Don't Leave Me
by 11Renee11
Summary: Everything seems to be going great for Freya. Bella's wedding went off without a hitch, the pack is stronger than ever, and she and Jacob have never been happier. But maybe it was time she learned that some things are just too good to last.
1. The Wedding That Started It All Part I

**Disclaimer: Twilight doesn't belong to me. The original characters do, though...so that's something! **

**Here it is! Chapter one of the sequel to my first completed fanfiction story, Don't Judge Me. Thank you all for all of your support on my previous story. Hopefully this one will be able to meet your expectations! Enjoy!**

**A/N: This is a sequel to a story- not a prequel. So if you haven't read the prequel, you might want to do that so that you actually know what the heck is going on. Because I'm such a nice person, here's a link to Don't Judge Me:) **

**_ - .net/s/6238426/1/Dont_Leave_Me -_**

**_*If the link doesn't work, or if not all of it saved onto this chapter- I swear, I've redone this author's note about a million times now:D- then the story is also available on my profile page. If it isn't working, I'm really sorry!*_**

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**Chapter One**

I'm really not sure what it was that woke me up that morning. Maybe it was the sun streaming through the blinds on Jake's window, or birds calling somewhere in the forest. I'm just going out on a limb with this theory here…but maybe it was Miley Cyrus _blaring_ out of the radio on my alarm clock?

"Good morning, baby," Jake whispered sleepily in my ear, tightening his hold around my waist and kissing my hair gently. I guess Hannah Montana's "Best of Both Worlds" shocked him awake, too.

"I've told you a million times," I chuckled, detangling myself from Jake's arms and getting up, not bothering to turn the alarm clock off, "don't call me baby." Turning the volume up a little on the radio to make sure Jake actually got up out of bed and didn't just sit there for another half hour, (I mean, who wants to listen to a radio station that plays the Hannah Montana theme song at six in the morning?) I focused on blending in with my surroundings, and soon enough, I was invisible.

Yeah, I know- turning invisible is kind of awesome. I know you're jealous, but if you could please refrain from smashing your computer in a jealous rage, it would be much appreciated.

"Come on, Freya," Jake begged, reaching out for where he thought my arm was, but only clutching thin air. "Don't go."

I kissed him quickly, laughing at the look of surprise on his face before heading out the door to sneak back to Jacob's older sister Rebecca's room, where Billy thought I'd been sleeping for the past month. He must either know that Jake and I are actually kind of responsible kids, or maybe he was just getting oblivious as he got older, because in reality, I'd only slept in Rebecca's room a handful of times. Most nights, I just snuck into Jake's room.

Today was a big day for me. Well…I'm sure it was a big day for Bella and Edward, too, but I'd been helping Alice and Esme prepare for this wedding for weeks now, and I'd been really freaking out about my Maid of Honor duties lately. The dress had to be fitted, the cake ordered, the invitations picked out and sent…it was a lot of pressure. Luckily, Alice lived for this kind of stuff. If it weren't for her and her helpful hints, Bella would have been better off just running off to Vegas.

I still heard Hannah in the other room, singing about how she's "got a limo out front", so I was assuming Jacob still hadn't quite woken up. I decided to give him a couple more minutes before entering his room armed with a bucket full of ice water. I crossed the hall and let myself into the small bathroom Rachel and Rebecca had shared when they were still living at the Black's home and began my morning routine.

When I'd gotten out of the shower and dressed myself in a T-shirt and jean shorts- Alice and Rosalie would be helping Bella and the bridesmaids get ready once we all arrived at the Cullen's house- I passed by Jake's room on the way to the kitchen to make breakfast. I almost went in, but quickly changed my mind when I heard a crashing noise. "SHUT UP MILEY!" I heard my boyfriend roar at the radio.

I was so proud of him.

With tears in my eyes, I made my way into the kitchen and started to heat up the stove top. I cracked a few eggs into a bowl, whisked in some milk, pepper, salt, and a few other spices, and poured the mixture into a pan. I may not have been much of a cook, but I could at least handle scrambled eggs.

"We really should be going," I frowned half an hour later when Jake and I had finished washing the breakfast dishes. "I would hate to be late to Bella's wedding."

"You two go ahead," Billy ordered with a kind smile. "I'm not quite ready to go yet, but I'll have Charlie pick me up later."

"No…Billy, Jake will stay here with you," I decided with a nod. "He doesn't have to be there as early as I do. I will never understand how men can get ready for their wedding day in less than an hour," I sighed with a shake of my head. "I'll see you both later," I grinned at them as I made my way toward the front door.

Jake slipped after me through the front door right before it was able to close, his hand resting lightly on my shoulder. "At least let me drive you there, Frey," he pleaded with me. "You shouldn't have to walk all the way to the Cullen's place. You'll be late."

"Say please," I ordered him with a mischievous grin.

Jake grinned, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close. "Please?" he whispered in my ear, trailing kisses all down my jaw line. With a delighted shiver, I grabbed his hand and led him out to his car. He opened the passenger side door for me, and I sat down in the seat and buckled the seat belt.

"You'll bring Billy up to the house when it's time?" I asked him as he parked in the Cullen's front yard.

"Of course I will," he replied with a roll of his eyes. "What, you think I'm just going to leave my dad at home by himself on his best friend's daughter's wedding day? I don't care how disabled he claims to be, my father is perfectly capable of beating the crap out of someone with a sturdy wooden cane."

"Don't talk about your dad that way," I scolded him with a laugh.

"Although he really seems to prefer metal canes," he continued thoughtfully.

"Jake!" I laughed, shoving him playfully in the arm. "Be nice, or I won't let you kiss me goodbye."

"Why would I want to kiss you anyway? You're a girl. You probably have cooties," he responded, sticking his tongue out at me.

I just rolled my eyes at him. "Fine," I shrugged. "Be that way. I'm going to go now. It might take a couple hours to get Bella all ready, and then I'll be on the opposite side of the altar all through the ceremony…and I'm sure Owen will want to dance with me at the reception. It could be a good six or seven hours before we get to be alone again, and that's if we don't go straight back to your place after the wedding."

"Oh, just shut _up_," he groaned, grabbing my face and pulling me toward him greedily for a kiss. Pretty soon, Jake had lifted me up out of my seat and onto his lap, his fingers were tangled in my hair, and we were both having trouble breathing. I might have passed out if Alice hadn't rapped her knuckles on the driver's side window.

"I've got to go," I said regrettably, opening the door and prying his arms off of my waist.

"You don't _have_ to," he argued, stubborn as ever. "Nobody's making you go, Frey."

"I am," Alice argued, grabbing my wrist in her ice-cold grip and beginning to drag me toward the house.

"I love you Jake!" I called over my shoulder. He was barely able to get out his "I love you, too!" before Alice slammed the front door and dragged me upstairs to her bathroom, where Bella and Rosalie were already getting started on Bella's hair.

"Bella, you look absolutely beautiful!" I exclaimed when I saw the elegant way Rosalie had pinned up her hair. "Can I hug her?" I asked the blonde vampire. "Or is that not allowed?"

"Go ahead," she shrugged, seeming disgusted at the idea of hugging a human. Or maybe it was just Bella? That couldn't be it- Bella was awesome. Who wouldn't like Bella? It must have been me that she was disgusted by.

I hugged my friend tightly, but carefully, so that I wouldn't mess up her beautiful hair. "How are you feeling?" I asked her. "Nervous?" I'd never been married before- can you say _DUH_- but when I was little and my mother told me stories about her wedding day, she never failed to mention how she had nearly trampled the reverend presiding over the ceremony, she was so nervous.

"A little," she admitted, biting her lip in a way that Edward probably found to be quite endearing.

"You'll be fine," I grinned at her. "You are going to have the most beautiful wedding Forks has ever seen."

"You aren't going to be much help getting her ready, are you?" Alice asked with a sigh.

"I'm not great with make-up, or hair, or anything," I frowned. "Not as talented as you two probably are. Is there anything I can do?"

"We'll find something for you later," Alice winked at me. "Start getting yourself ready for now. Your dress is hanging up in Esme's closet with the others. Go ahead and get ready in her room; she won't mind."

"Okaaay," I mumbled. "See you later then, Bells," I saluted my friend with a grin. Then, I headed down the hall to Esme's room, and opened her closet. "Holy crap!" I gasped when I saw the rows and rows of clothes that had been stored in Esme's gigantic walk-in closet. Luckily, the bridesmaids' dresses were hanging in the front; otherwise, I would have drowned in cashmere and Chanel labels before I ever found them.

I quickly undressed- how embarrassing would it be if Esme or Carlisle or someone were to walk into the room while I was changing? I slipped the gown on, and looked at myself in the mirror.

The silvery fabric of the dress seemed to almost…shimmer. It sort of flowed over my boxy form like water, making my nonexistent curves unnoticeable, which was a good thing for me. It didn't do a lot for my flat chest- which in reality could only be helped by thousands of dollars in plastic surgery- but if I stood next to Leah, the other female werewolf who had to deal with the same physical let-downs as I did, maybe it wouldn't be as noticeable. My hair was…well…dark, straight, and ordinary. I would never get Rosalie to put it up in an immaculate bun like Bella's, but maybe Alice would help me if I asked her nicely?

Eventually, my analyzing gaze reached my eyes.

The dark brown eyes staring back at me were flecked with gold. I remembered a time, maybe two months ago, when the gold flecks had been the ruby red of a newborn vampire. I can't tell you how many meals of raw deer and elk I'd forced Jake to suffer through alongside me to get that red to turn gold. Now that I'd made the effort, my eyes were actually kind of pretty, instead of boring and flat like they'd been before.

A couple months ago, this nutcase of a vampire named Victoria decided it would be a good idea to raise an army of newborn vampires, and then march them over to Forks, just to kill Bella. Personally, I think that was taking revenge a little too far. I mean, wouldn't a knife to the heart or running her over with a car be easier? Well, somebody had already tried the car thing sometime last year, and Victoria was too much of a psycho to find an effective way to kill anybody.

After a series of dramatic, suspenseful, and heart-wrenching events, where I showed an impeccable display of selflessness, bravery, determination, and just a little bit of insanity, I ended up in a battle to the death with the nutcase mentioned above. I gave a good fight, but Victoria had to have been running away from fights for at least a hundred years- probably a gross exaggeration, but thinking of her as an old hag really did make me feel better about the whole ordeal- and I was only seventeen. She ended up biting me in the neck and draining me of about half my blood. Jacob was able to find my friend, Owen, whom the previously mentioned hag had turned into a vampire, and he able to save me by sucking all the venom out of my blood (I personally think he stole the idea from Edward). He was kind enough to save just a little bit of my blood inside my body for me to live off of, the dear. Jake ripped Victoria into nice little bite-sized pieces, and lit her on fire. Not the best way to go, but maybe little Tori's parents should have taught her- the way my parents taught me- that no, biting was _not_ the way to make new friends.

I was never really the same after Victoria bit me. A bite from a vampire to a werewolf was supposed to be fatal. For some reason, not only had my father- an ex-werewolf himself- survived it, but now I had, too. Carlisle figures it's a genetic thing. A few days after the bite, I began noticing weird things about me. Like the way my skin seemed to shimmer in the sunlight, and how my body temperature had gone back down, closer to normal and farther away from the standard 108-degree temperature the rest of the werewolves had been measured at. I also started seeing this light surrounding anybody and everybody around me. The lights varied in brightness, and it took a little help from Edward for me to figure out that the lights were a measure of trustworthiness a person had in relation to me. The less likely a person was to hurt me, the brighter their light was. Oh, and remember that invisibility thing I was talking about earlier? That little screwdriver in my box of shiny new tools was curtsey of Victoria, as well.

So…I think I've got you pretty much caught up to speed, as far as the freaky-vampire/werewolf-hybrid thing goes. Honestly, I could have saved a whole lot of time and energy if you had just gone and actually read my stories in order. I mean, seriously, I put a link at the top and everything. **It was in bold**. _And italicized_. →And I'm pretty sure I had a couple of arrows pointing to it.← So don't give me that_** → "Oops, I didn't see the bold italicized author's note with little arrows pointing to it" ← **_crap. Come on, you guys- even Quil's five-year-old imprint knows how to read and follow directions.

"Freya? Is it alright if I come in?" Esme's honey-sweet voice called from outside the door.

"Oh, of course," I nodded, forgetting for the moment that even vampires couldn't see through doors. "I was just getting ready."

The door opened soundlessly- literally, soundlessly; I would have heard if it had made any noise- and Esme quietly made her way across the room to observe me in my shimmery dress. "You look beautiful, dear," she smiled at me. "Here, let me fix your hair."

I hadn't realized it had needed fixing, but…I guess Esme knew more about the art of "looking pretty" than I did, so I just shrugged, and allowed her to tangle her hands in my hair, every once in a while dashing out of the room, only to return with a mouthful of these little metal wire things which she placed strategically throughout my hair to pin it up.

She ended up twisting my hair in a complicated braid at the top of my head. Don't even ask me to describe how it looked; I totally suck at describing anything girly (Hair, clothes, shoes, makeup, etc.). But let me just tell you that it looked absolutely stunning. It wasn't as elegant as Bella's hairstyle, but that was a good thing. This was Bella's special day, not mine, and I didn't want my hair to look more fabulous than hers- although I must say, it was pretty darn close.

Once I was all ready to walk ahead of Bella down the isle, I made my way back toward the bathroom where Rosalie and Alice were getting ready to slide the dress over the beautiful girl's head. "Carefully now, Rose," Alice breathed to her sister as she lifted the dress over Bella's head.

"Why didn't you just do her hair and everything after she had the dress on?" I wondered aloud. I was shocked into silence by an absolutely despicable evil glare from Rosalie. "Jeez, didn't mean to offend you, or anything," I muttered darkly.

"Don't take it personally, Freya," Alice sighed. "She's like that with everybody."

"I am not!" Rosalie snipped. "I just don't like that there's a filthy, disgusting mutt stinking up my bathroom!"

"Rosalie, Freya, please," Bella pleaded. "Can we stop the bickering.. just for today?"

"I'm not the one with the problem here, Bells," I replied defensively. "But she's right. How about we call a temporary truce?" I offered the blonde vampire.

"Fine," she hissed.

She and I didn't talk to each other much after that. Somehow, this really didn't bother me.

After what seemed like hours of pampering, plucking, and preparing, we were finally ready to begin the ceremony. Bella was shaking like a leaf by the time Charlie arrived at the top of the Cullen's winding staircase to take his daughter's arm and lead her down the aisle.

"Alright, everybody…get in line. Make sure you count to three before following me down the stairs, Freya. And Bella, try not to trip over anything. You look beautiful, you really do, Bella. I can't wait to see the look on Edward's face when he sees you in that dress!" Alice gushed, all in one breath. It was a good thing vampires didn't need to breathe, because if they did, Alice would have suffocated by now for sure.

"Alice, chill," I ordered her with a grin. "Just because you can't see how things are going to turn out doesn't mean we're walking downstairs to our impending doom."

"You're right. I'm sorry," she apologized, taking a deep breath. "The music is about to start. Are you girls ready?"

"As ready as we'll ever be, right Bella?" I grinned over my shoulder. She managed a shaky nod in my direction. I didn't really expect much more of a response out of her; I was fairly certain she was going into shock. "Hold on to her, Officer Swan," I whispered to Charlie. He nodded, as well, and I was suddenly able to see how very alike this father/daughter pair was.

The music started, and Alice began her graceful dance down the stairs. All eyes were on her, I could tell- being a vampire, she was kind of inhumanly beautiful. Werewolves didn't get that luxury. We were just inhumanly buff, which was great on a guy, but Leah and I just looked like we'd been taking steroids for the past year and a half. So when I made my way down the staircase, I really wasn't expecting too many people to be staring at me.

Looking up at the altar, I could see that Edward was a little nervous, too, although I doubted it was for the same reason Bella was. He was probably waiting for Charlie to come running down the stairs screaming, "Where's the bride? Where's the bride?" God, some men had such an unattractively low amount of self-esteem. I mean, with hair like Edward's, Bella would be crazy to leave him.

Suddenly, I had that weird feeling that I was being watched. You know…sort of like a sixth sense. I glanced casually around the room, searching for the pair of eyes that were watching me so closely. Of course- Jacob. He was staring at me, his jaw practically hanging from its hinges.

He looked nice- really nice. There's something about my boyfriend wearing a tux that made me really want to throw my arms around his neck and kiss him in front of all my family and friends. But I guess that would have to wait a few years. Unlike Edward, I was going to get older, so I didn't have an excuse to get married at seventeen.

Once Jake's eyes locked on mine, there really was no escape for me. His gaze was just so…so intense. Even when Bella finally made her way up to the alter, and Edward took her arm. Everything the reverend said just sort of washed over me. I was completely and totally lost in Jacob's eyes. It was kind of freaky, to be honest. It was like I wanted nothing more than to break eye contact and focus on something- anything- other than him. But I couldn't seem to look away.

"I love you," he mouthed across the isle to me.

"I love you," I replied silently.

When the ceremony was over, Bella and Edward were absolutely bombarded by guests, waiting in line to give them each a hug and a "Congratulations!" I was just about to go get in line when someone grabbed my forearm from behind and leaned in close to me. I could feel Jacob's breath on my neck as he whispered, "Come with me." He pulled me gently along behind him. Where we were going, I had no idea, but I kept following along anyway.

We ended up going upstairs, and into a room I was guessing belonged to Edward, judging by crazy amount of music he had on display, sorted by year- going all the way back to the early 1900s.

"Edward's busy right now," Jake explained, closing the door behind us.

"Jake, what's going on?" I laughed. "We have to be down at the reception…"

"Just…stop talking, Freya," he grinned. He crossed the distance between us easily in two long strides, and then he was kissing me again, with much more force than that morning. He fairly attacked my lips, seeming to _need _to kiss me more than he wanted to. Something had changed in him since the last time we kissed; I could feel it.

"Jake…" I gasped for air, hoping that maybe he would explain.

"I love you, so much," he said, looking into my eyes as he brushed a strand of loose hair away from my face.

"I know you do," I chuckled. "And I love you, too. But what was all that about?"

"I…I just…" he shook his head, and then started over. "You just look so beautiful, Freya. Really, you do."

"Thank you," I blushed. If it hadn't been for the marvelous compliment he'd paid me, I might have actually called him on his crap. "You don't look half bad yourself. Although…who did your tie?" I asked with a frown.

"I did," he stated proudly. "What, is something wrong?"

With a sigh, I reached up and re-tied his tie, making sure it was actually done correctly this time. "Not anymore," I grinned at him. "Come on, the reception should be starting soon. I'd hate to miss it."

"I wouldn't," he grumbled, kissing me one last time before we made our way quietly back down the stairs. The receiving line by now had made its way out back, where the reception was to be held. I could have sworn that when we passed by Edward, I saw Jake mouth "Thank you!"

You know what? I really didn't want to know.

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**Well, there it was! Chapter One! Let me know what you all think:) **

**Just in case any new readers missed the Author's Note at the beginning of the chapter AND my subtle little hint courtesy of your new friend Freya, I'm going to put the link down here, too. If you didn't miss the Author's Note and just didn't want to read the prequel to this story- that's cool, too. Although you might want to do that...I mean, I've been told it's an OK story. :D **

**Thanks to everybody who read the prequel and is reading this right now- you guys are AMAZING! Thank you so much! And thank you to my beta, Rebecca Masen, for fixing all my spelling errors xD **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	2. The Wedding That Started It All Part II

**Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer. Is my name Stephanie Meyer? No. Get the idea? ;) :D**

**Hey! I'm so glad you guys liked the first chapter! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get this next chapter up, but hey- school's started, so there goes most of my time:D If I do seem to take a REALLY long time getting an update up, don't worry- I promise, I have no intention of abandoning this story:) If I don't update, it just means I've been getting an inhumane amount of homework:) **

**Well...I want to say thank you to everybody who reviewed chapter 1- hypothetical pennies for all of you! Thanks a ton to my beta, Rebecca Masen, for yet again reading, reviewing, and revising this chapter for me! You guys are all amazing:D Enjoy chapter 2!**

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**Chapter Two**

It was twilight by the time all the guests had made their way outside, where the reception was to be held. Alice had timed everything just right, and I couldn't help but admire her skill. The sun had set, and the twinkle lights Alice and I had spent the better part of an hour stringing up looked remarkable. They sparkled and shined in the trees above our heads, and I couldn't help but feel like I'd been thrown into a fairy tale.

"Freya, Jacob, your seats are over here," Bella called to us, waving. We hurried over to her table, and sat at our assigned spots- right next to each other. I guess helping plan the wedding really did have some perks.

The food was delicious. Bella and Edward were so sweet…they hardly looked away from each other for the entire meal. At one point, I thought I saw him feeding her little bits of green beans. "Come on, Jacob," I teased him. "Why can't you be more like Edward?"

"He's much too old for you," he sighed. "I mean, really- I think yesterday was his hundredth birthday."

Bella laughed, and Edward even cracked a smile. Good- they'd been supposed to hear us.

When the meal was over, men and women dressed in black and white came and took our plates, probably to the kitchen to be washed. Once all the plates had been collected, Alice gave a little nod to Edward. He took Bella by the arm, and led her over to the beautifully decorated wedding cake. They cut the cake, shoving bits of it into each other's mouths, and the cameras were flashing like mad. I figured there would be hundreds of pictures of this moment on Facebook by next week- Jake and I stayed at our table, his hand wrapped tightly around mine.

I was going to stay seated for the throwing of the bouquet, but Jacob urged me to join the other single women crowding around Bella. "Come on, Clip," he teased me. "It's not like you'll actually end up catching it, or anything. Besides- it'll be entertaining to watch."

"Oh, shut up, you jerk," I grinned, pushing his head down hard so that the tip of his nose was covered in frosting.

"Love you, too, baby!" he called after me.

With a roll of my eyes, I stood next to Bella's friend, Angela, at the back of the crowd. Bella counted to three, and tossed the bouquet over her shoulder. I ducked out of the way, my hands up in the air- I'd never seen Bella in gym class, but I'd heard some pretty gruesome stories. With my luck, the bouquet would end up hitting me in the eye.

Imagine my surprise when I felt soft flower petals against my fingertips! Out of instinct, I grabbed the flowers before they could fall. All around me, people were bursting out laughing at my display. The Maid of Honor catches the bouquet in an attempt to shield herself from the bride's horrible aim- what a sight I must have been! I brought the flowers up to my nose and breathed in their sweet scent. Soon Bella was at my side, hugging me tightly.

After the bouquet had been caught, the men and women who had not already been standing began to get up out of their seats, and making their way toward the dance floor. I brought the bouquet of flowers over to my seat next to Jacob, and sat down.

"Hmm…" I said thoughtfully, staring down at the flowers in my hands. "I'm never going to hear the end of that, you know."

"I don't believe you will," he agreed with a grin.

"I blame you."

"I wouldn't expect anything else out of you, Frey," he grinned at me.

Alice flitted up to a raised platform on the edge of the dance floor, and adjusted the microphone down to her height. "I've got a bit of a surprise for you all," Alice grinned.

At the sound of Alice's voice over the speakers, I froze. I knew what Alice's "surprise" was. I had helped her plan out this surprise, and I had been preparing for it ever since I brought the idea up. But suddenly, I was absolutely shaking with nerves.

"When we were hiring a DJ to play for us here today," she explained, "one of the bridesmaids thought it would be a good idea to have a live band, instead. As it turns out, this bridesmaid is actually quite a fair singer, and she has offered to share that talent with us today. Everyone, let's welcome Miss Freya Lust to the stage," she finished. Everyone clapped, and I thought I heard a couple of cat-calls from one of the wolves who were in attendance.

I squeezed Jake's hand for luck- he seemed to be too much in shock to really respond- and made my way up to the stage. I took the microphone from Alice, and raised it up about half a foot.

"Hey there, everybody," I smiled at them. "I'm Freya- Bella's Maid of Honor. I've never done this before, and I'm really nervous, so…bare with me." They all clapped again- bless them- and I continued. "This first song is for Bella, and her new husband. Congratulations, you guys."

Edward had to practically drag Bella out onto the dance floor, but eventually he convinced her to dance. Once they'd made their way out onto the floor, I began my song.

"My love," I began, taking the microphone off its stand and holding it closer to my, "there's only you in my life, the only thing that's right."

Bella and Edward were dancing now- well, sort of. It was really more like swaying, since Bella had never been much of a dancer. But they both seemed to like my song pretty well, and nobody yelled at me to get off the stage, so I guess I was singing pretty well, too. In fact, there were several people in the audience who had their eyes closed, and were almost swaying back and forth.

When the song finished, the band behind me- a group of kids from La Push who oftentimes played at weddings- ended the song on a nice, pretty chord, and the audience applauded me. Bella's eyes were shining, and if Edward were able to cry, he would have been right then.

"The best of luck, to both of you," I smiled at my new friends.

I went through a couple other cute little love songs- "I Can't Help Falling in Love With You", "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?", "A Moment Like This", "Faithfully", "Your Song", and a couple others. Everybody seemed to like my singing…I mean, everybody was dancing, and throwing money at me and such, so I guess I was doing alright. Later in the evening, I began taking suggestions. Thus, I sang to "Fergalicious", "Gives You Hell", "The Lady Is A Tramp", "Jessie's Girl", and "Who Let the Dogs Out". Most of these suggestions were made by Embry and Quil, but Alice specifically told me not to reject any suggestions made by the guests if I knew the song. And, as sad as it may be…I knew all those songs.

I'd been singing for a couple hours, and it was just about time for me to take my break. I decided I'd sing one last song before I got out there on the dance floor.

"This next song is for my boyfriend and absolute best friend ever, Jacob Black," I announced with a blush.

The music started, and my grip on the microphone was starting to turn my knuckles white. "Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh," I began, searching the crowd for his face. Finally, I found it- he was standing there, wide-eyed. But when he saw me looking at him, he grinned.

Suddenly, I found the self confidence I needed to really belt out that Taylor Swift.

"You were in college working part time waitin' tables," I grinned at him. "Left a small town, never looked back. I was a flight risk, with a fear of falling, wondering why we bother with love, if it never lasts.

"I say, 'Can you believe it?' as we're lyin' on the couch. The moment, I can see it. Yes, yes, I can see it now.

"Do you remember we were sittin' there by the water? You put your arm around me for the first time. You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter. You are the best thing, that's ever been mine."

As I stood up on stage, I couldn't help but love the feeling that came over me. Excitement, anxiety…adrenaline rushing through my veins as I wondered absentmindedly what I would do if I were to mess up the lyrics. Jake's eyes were still on me, and he was grinning like crazy.

"Flash forward and we're taking on the world together. And there's a drawer of my things at your place. You learn my secrets and figure out why I'm guarded. You say we'll never make my parents' mistakes.

"But we got bills to pay. We got nothing figured out. When it was hard to take, yes, yes- this is what I thought about.

"Do you remember we were sittn' there, by the water? You put your arm around me for the first time. You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter. You are the best thing that's ever been mine.

"Do you remember all the city lights on the water? You saw me start to believe for the first time. You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter. You are the best thing that's ever been mine.

"Oh, oh, oh, oh," I sang, a grin on my face as I realized how very…fitting this song was for the two of us.

"I remember that fight, two-thirty AM, you said everything was slipping right out of our hands. I ran out, crying and you followed me out into the street.

"Braced myself for the goodbye, 'cause it's all I've ever known. Then, you took me by surprise. You said 'I'll never leave you alone'.

"You said, 'I remember how we felt sittin' by the water, and every time I look at you, it's like the first time. I fell in love with a careless man's careful daughter. She is the best thing that's ever been mine.'

"You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter. You are the best thing that's ever been mine.

"Do you believe it? We're gonna make it now. And I can see it- I can see it now."

The crowd applauded thunderously this time, and their applause was only stirred on when I jumped off the stage and ran right over to Jacob, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him in for a kiss.

"I love you," I reminded him once again.

"I love you, too," he grinned at me. "You sing so beautifully…I didn't know you could sing like that."

"I don't usually sing in public," I admitted. "Alice needed someone to sing at the wedding, and it was either me or Rosalie…I figured I'd be more fun."

"Well, you were wonderful," he assured me. Just then, a slow, instrumental song started playing. When I looked up at the band curiously- they were supposed to be on break, too- Jessie, the bass player, winked at me. Jake must have seen it, too, because he grabbed my hand and dragged me out onto the dance floor.

"I'm warning you, Jake- I'm not exactly the world's best dancer, or anything." I thought it was only fair to let him know that dancing was not my forte.

"And I'm not exactly Michael Jackson," he replied with a grin. "Besides, it's all in the leading. If we look stupid, everybody will know it's my fault."

Unable to argue with his logic, I gave in, resting my hand on his shoulder and letting him place one hand at my waist. His other hand gripped my free one, and we went twirling around the dance floor the best we could.

"You know, you aren't half bad at this," Jake mused. "Compared to Bella…"

"Speaking of Bella," my friend greeted me. "Freya! You sang wonderfully earlier."

"Oh, thank you, Bells," I replied gratefully, still swaying to the music in Jake's arms. "It's been so much fun. I think maybe I should start doing this for money. You know…singing at weddings."

"You would be wonderful at that," she nodded sincerely. "I was wondering if I could have the next dance with Jake?" She was biting her lip nervously, hoping I wouldn't take her request the wrong way.

"I'd love to dance with you, Bella," Jake smiled at her. "Just let me finish dancing with my lovely girlfriend first."

"Of course," she nodded, quickly getting out of our way- a blush coloring her cheeks as usual- so that we could continue our dancing.

"Doesn't she know better than to interrupt a guy while he's dancing?" Jake sighed, pulling me closer to him. I rested my head on his chest- I wasn't quite able to reach his shoulder, him being about seven feet tall, and all- and closed my eyes.

"Well, I can't say I blame her," I sighed. "I mean, she seems to have danced with every man here…except for you. I don't blame her for being impatient for her turn."

"Bella is the only other girl I'll dance with," he promised. "And only because it's her wedding night and she asked me to."

"No, don't be like that," I chuckled. "You can't just stand there and watch me sing all night. That hardly seems like fun. I'm not so selfish as to keep you away from the rest of the room…as I get to dance with you last."

He just rolled his eyes and continued to sway.

When the song was over, I had to let Jacob go. He found Bella, on the edge of the dance floor with Edward, and took her arm.

"That should be interesting," Edward chuckled. "Seeing the two of them dance."

"She looks like she's actually…having fun," I noted with surprise as Jake twirled her in a little circle. He looked like he was having a pretty good time, too, now that I thought about it. More fun than he'd had with me. "Do you hate watching this as much as I do?" I asked, looking up at Edward.

"This…would have really bothered me, a few months ago," he admitted. "But…I really do think Jacob is over her. He loves _you_ now."

"You're so lucky," I sighed, resisting the temptation to run my hands through my hair. I would have hated to waste all that time and effort Esme had put into putting it up for me. "Bella loves you, so much…and she always will. And you will always love her just as much- forever."

"Jacob will love you forever, too," Edward assured me softly.

I shook my head. "No…no, one day, he's going to find the person he's _supposed _to be with. He'll imprint on some blonde chick from Florida who actually has curves." I was scowling now, picturing my future once Jake did the inevitable and imprinted.

Edward put his hands on my shoulders and looked at me, making it almost impossible not to meet his gaze. "Freya, listen to me," he ordered. "Do not waste your time thinking about the future. Don't worry about when and where Jacob is going to imprint. It isn't worth it. Focus on now- how you feel about him _right now_, and how he feels about you. You love him. Remember that."

He was, of course, right. Sure, there were vampires like Rosalie who were more vapid and self-centered than anything else, but many of the vampires- especially the ones who have been around as long as Edward- were actually pretty wise. Edward really did know what he was talking about.

He must have heard at least a majority of the previous paragraph in my thoughts, because now he was smiling at me. "Come on, Freya," he said, offering his hand out to me. "Let's dance."

We spun around for a while, and I had to say, Edward was a marvelous dancer. Never before in my entire life had I felt so graceful without trying. I felt…well, almost as if I were flying. I was used to power, strength, and speed. Beauty and grace were new to me. When the song was over, I thanked Edward for the dance and gave him back to his wife.

Soon after that, it was time for Bella and Edward to make their way to the airport. Nobody really knew where they were going- except for Alice and Edward. I hadn't even been let in on the little secret. Once we had finally shooed them out of the house in a storm of rice, the guests began to leave. I helped the Cullen's clean up a little, but when I started yawning, they ordered me to go home- vampires didn't really need sleep, after all.

Billy had gotten a ride home, so it was just me and Jacob in the car that night. He opened the passenger door for me, and I climbed in. Soon, he was buckling himself into the driver's seat and had turned the keys in the ignition.

"Hmm…Jake?" I asked, turning to him as he pulled out of the driveway and down onto the road.

"Yeah?"

"Just out of curiosity…where did you end up finding your keys?" I inquired.

"After you had Edward and Bella hide them, you mean?" he laughed. "They ended up in my breakfast the next morning. Once second, I was eating a delicious omelet- the next I'm choking on the ring of car keys I hadn't known was missing."

"I love Edward," I grinned. "Best vampire _ever."_

"As far as vampires go, I guess he's an ok guy," Jake shrugged. "So. Where to now?"

"Umm…home?" I suggested. "Or did you have something else in mind?"

"No- home is good," he nodded. He turned off the dirt road leading up to the Cullen's place and onto the street. There wasn't a lot of traffic here, but then again, there was never too much traffic anywhere in Forks. Pretty soon, we were parked in the Black's driveway, and he was helping me out of the car.

"Thank you," I grinned at him as he shut the door behind me. When he finally looked away from the car and back at me, I leaned up on my toes and kissed him lightly on the mouth. Then, I broke out in a run toward the house.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, chasing after me. Jake caught me at the front porch, grabbing me from behind around the waist, and pulled me to him. "I'm faster than you are, you know," he informed me.

"I know," I nodded, grinning again, "but I'm a just a small, helpless little girl- and you're kind of big and you scare small children. If you ever catch me, I can always just scream rape," I teased him. "Maybe I should buy a whistle."

"Maybe you should," he nodded. "Poor little girl, I didn't mean to scare you."

"I think I'll live," I admitted. "Now…if you don't mind, I'd like to go inside. It's getting cold out, and these shoes are killing me." I tried to push by him- turns out he was stronger than me, too. The next thing I knew, I was in the air, being _carried_ into the house.

When Jake put me down on Rebecca's bed, I glared up at him, not needing to look to remove the shoes. "I didn't mean that literally, you know," I stated. "I would have been ok walking into the house."

"I didn't want to take that chance," Jake admitted. "I would have felt awful if you'd have keeled over right there on the porch, just because I didn't get you off your feet soon enough."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure that's it," I muttered to myself. "Now, help me get all these pins out of my hair, will you?" I ordered, patting a spot on the bed behind me.

Obediently, Jake climbed up on the bed and began to remove the many clips and pins and all those little wire things and placing them in my upturned palm. It took way longer than I'd thought it would have- I mean, it had only taken Esme a few minutes to put my hair up. Who would have thought it would take half an hour to take it down?

"I'm almost done," Jake assured me. By now, I had collected a pile of clips about two inches high. Thank goodness I hadn't had to go through any metal detectors today- someone would have thought I'd slipped a gun into my purse. At last, the final clip was removed, and my hair fairly cascaded down my back.

"Thank you," I sighed, shaking my head a little. "How bad does it look?"

"It doesn't," he replied, and I could feel his hands running through my hair. "It looks beautiful, Frey. You should keep it like this for a while."

"Do you want me to?" I asked him with a grin.

"Yes."

"Hmm…alright." I turned around to smile up at him. "Just for you." I reached up- it was times like these I realized how short I was for a werewolf- and kissed him.

Yup. My life was going really well at this point.

Maybe that's why my mom decided to call.

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**So! There you have it. Chapter two! By the way, the song Freya sang to Jake is called Mine by Taylor Swift. I happened to be listening to it when I wrote this...so it ended up in the story:) The song she was singing for Edward and Bella's first dance was called Endless Love. I thought it was fitting:) **

**Hmm...I wonder what Freya's mom wants? This could be a very dramatic chapter coming up...haha:D **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	3. Riff's New Friend

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Twilight, and I'm beginning to think that I never will:( Oh darn. I guess for now I will have to be content with borrowing Twilight and its characters so that my overactive imagination will have something to do with itself. :) **

**I'm sorry it's taken me a while to get this up...my beta's email isn't working right, so this hasn't been edited by her, either. I looked through it, but I overlook a lot of mistakes when I self-edit. So, here's my apology in advance:) **

**I hope you guys are liking this story! :D Thanks a ton for all of the reviews! **

* * *

I sat there for a few seconds, just staring at the phone, thinking about the unfairness of it all. Why was it that just when everything was going right, my mom had to come and ruin everything? I was a pretty happy kid, until my mom walked out on me last year when I first started transforming. My dad, Riff, and I had been getting along pretty well without her, when, surprise, surprise! She shows up on our front door like a lost puppy. She was the reason I was now living in Jake's sister, Rachel's room while she was away at school. I seriously debated just not answering- ignoring her, like she'd ignored me for the past year...

"Are you going to answer?" Jake asked, holding my cell phone out to me. "You know she's just going to leave a message, and call again later."

I nodded. My mother was many things. Persistent was one of them. I took a deep breath, and answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Freya, you answered," my mother breathed. "I was afraid…well. It's nice to hear your voice again. You haven't visited in a while, and your father and I have been worried about you. We've missed you."

Since I moved out of my dad's house and come to live with Jake and his father, I'd only visited my parents a couple of times. I kept telling them that it was because I was busy with the wedding, or the pack had me running the late night rounds again. In reality, I just really, really didn't want to see my mom. Things had gotten better between us- it was much easier to ignore her when I didn't have to see her first thing when I woke up every morning.

"Well…tell Dad I miss him, too. I've been real busy with Bella's wedding…where was Dad? He said he was going to come."

"He was busy. With work."

"Oh." Bull. They'd probably been taking advantage of the empty house, since Riff was still with his friend in the Midwest and I was living with Jake. You know what? I really didn't want to think about that.

"Well…Riff is coming home next weekend. I wanted to make sure you would come see him, maybe come with us to get him from the airport. Jake can drive you, if you would like that better than riding with your father and me."

"Of course I'll be there," I scoffed. "I wouldn't miss it."

"Alright. I'll see you Sunday, then."

"Fine. See you Sunday." I hung up without another word. No other words were needed; Mom knew how I felt about her, about her abandoning me and my brother and father the way she had when I'd first transformed. This was probably the longest conversation we'd had since she'd decided to come back home.

"Would you mind driving me to the airport on Sunday?" I asked Jacob as I handed him my phone to put back on the bedside table. "Riff's coming home and I'm not sure I'm up to riding in the back seat of my dad's car while he and my mom talk about how amazing she is."

Jake just rolled his eyes at me- he hated that my mother had hurt me, but I was starting to get the feeling that he thought it was about time I let that ship sail. Maybe he was right, maybe he wasn't. Maybe I would never forgive my mother. I didn't know, and I didn't really put forth a lot of thought to try and figure it out. Jake may have thought I was being stubborn and a little bit stupid, but he nodded anyway, saying, "Yeah, of course," and wrapping his arms around me and kissing my hair.

The best thing about having a dog for a boyfriend? You know he'll always be loyal…until he imprints on some blonde chick in a bikini with perfect curves and cute clothes who doesn't have to think about how upset she'd be if she ripped her outfit into shreds when she's getting dressed in the morning...

I gave myself a little mental shake. Edward was right- I should enjoy the time with Jacob that I had. Who knew how long it would be before he imprinted? For all I knew, maybe he would never imprint. If I spent all my time freaking out about when and where and who he'll imprint, I would have a complete and total mental breakdown. At this moment, Jake and I were happy- and that was all that mattered.

"You're quiet," Jake accused me, reaching across my waist to grab my hands in his. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head. "Nothing's wrong, Jake. It's been…a long day, is all," I sighed, leaning back against his chest. "I've been kind of stressed out lately, and I'm just sort of…tired."

"No kidding," he chuckled, tightening his hold on me. "I'd be exhausted if I were you, too. Do you want me to go? So that you can sleep?"

"As long as you come back," I smiled up at him.

"Alright," he agreed with a grin. "I'll be back later."

"I love you," I reminded him before he left.

With a grin, he leaned over and pressed his lips gently against mine. "I love you, too," he whispered. "Get some rest. You've earned it."

"Hah. Yeah, I'll say," I muttered under my breath. "If I have to sing one more song about love and sunshine, I swear I'm going to jump off a bridge. Or get sick."

Jake rolled his eyes, patted me on the shoulder, and left the room. I quickly got out of my dress and into a pair of loose sweats and a T-shirt- much more comfortable. I hadn't been tired at the wedding; I'd probably been all high on adrenaline the entire evening. But now…man. I was starting to feel the long, long day I'd had. With a yawn, I curled up under the blankets and fell blissfully asleep.

I wasn't surprised when I woke up to Jake's strong hold around my waist. It was something I'd become accustomed to- expected, even. I slipped carefully away from him, being sure not to wake him on accident.

Of course, it was hard to sneak away from a werewolf. Jake grabbed onto my wrist with a groan. "Where are you going?" he demanded, pulling me back toward him.

"It's morning, sleepy head," I chuckled, pulling myself out of his grasp. "Wake up. I'm going to get some breakfast together for us and Billy."

"He's fishing today, with Charlie," Jake yawned. "He didn't want him to be too lonely now Bella's gone."

"Oh…"

"Yeah. And I didn't get to be alone with you all night last night, so…get back over here, Clip," he ordered, getting hold of my wrist once more and pulling me gently toward him again.

"Jeez, somebody's grouchy," I teased, but did as he asked and slid back into the circle of his arms. With a contented sigh, I allowed myself to relax, listening to the sound of Jake's breathing, concentrating on the steady rise and fall of his chest.

"Hmm," Jake sighed, pulling me just a little bit closer to him. "I'm not gonna lie, Frey. This is nice."

"No kidding," I agreed with a grin. "You know, we could just stay like this for the whole morning…"

And so we did.

At about one in the afternoon, I had just slipped back into consciousness, when Sam called. He said we were needed at his place ASAP, to discuss the patrol schedule that we would be using during the school year. None of us had graduated yet- Paul and Jared were a year older than I was, and both of them should have been seniors the year before, but Paul flunked a grade and Jared had to skip the last half of school when he'd begun changing because he'd been so out of it. The whole pack was going back to school in a couple of weeks, and we needed to get things sorted out for the school year.

So Jake finally dragged himself back to his room, and we got dressed and ready to spend some quality time with our pack.

Hand in hand, Jake and I made our way to Sam's front porch. Jake knocked on the door, and seconds later we were greeted by Emily's smiling face. "Come on in," she offered, holding the door open wider for us so that we could enter side-by-side.

I gave her a tight hug; I was always happy to see Emily. When I released her, I sat down next to Quil on the couch. Jake sat on the arm of the couch and kept his arm draped casually over my shoulder.

"Hey, Quil," I greeted my brother. "How's Claire?"

"Hey, Clip!" he exclaimed, apparently glad to see me. "Oh, she's just great," he grinned. Claire, being his imprint and thus the center of his entire universe, was always his favorite topic of conversation. "I took her to the beach for the first time yesterday, and every time the tide would come up far enough to touch her toes, she'd laugh and throw rocks into the water. We came up with this game…"

And he was off.

I listened to Quil's stories about his imprint doing something especially cute, thinking to myself- thank GOD I will never be like this. That I will never imprint. Well…probably not, anyway. I mean, I love Quil, and all…but I can't help remembering what he was like before he met Claire. He'd been funny, and smart, and always good for a laugh. He still was- don't get me wrong- but now, most of what he has to say ends up turning back to Claire at some point. Which made those of us who hadn't imprinted yet feel kind of…uncomfortable, to be honest. We all wondered if we were going to be like that when we imprinted.

At last, the last of our pack arrived and seated themselves around the small wooden table in the center of the room, and we got down to business.

It was decided that, since I'd practically run myself to death the previous year by offering to take both the midnight shift and the late afternoon patrol, that I would be taking the late afternoon patrol- the one only I could really take, since the others, who were about twice my size, looked too conspicuous during the daytime- and the midnight patrol on weekends. I should have expected them to act this way- like I was weak and couldn't carry my weight, like I needed protecting. After everything we'd gone through this summer, after everything I'd risked and everything I'd accomplished, I was still their baby sister.

When we finally got the patrols scheduled, Emily had hot plates of quesadillas ready for us. Quesadillas were my favorite. Emily hadn't made them since before the battle with Victoria and her army earlier that summer, and all of us were ecstatic to see their return. We wolfed down our lunch- get it? Wolfed, because we're werewolves- and then began to file out the door in order to enjoy our last bits of summer.

For the next week or so, Jake and I hung out around the house, at the beach, at Sam and Emily's place, in the woods. We went cliff diving one last time with the rest of our pack, which was fun as ever, and prepared for the school year to begin. By Sunday morning, I was enrolled, had my supplies and backpack ready to go, and was looking forward to Monday, when I would begin my senior year of high school. Now, all that was left was to pick up Riff at the airport.

"Come on, Jake," I called to him from the kitchen, where Billy and I were quickly eating a simple breakfast of toast with scrambled eggs. "Hurry up and eat before we leave."

When I heard the groan coming from his bedroom, I scowled. Picking up my brother was not something I wanted to be late for. It was important to me. So, with a huff, I marched over to Jake's room and let myself in.

"Jacob Black, if I think you're going to make me late picking up my brother today, I'm going to hotwire your car and leave without you," I threatened.

"I'm up, Frey," he said with a yawn. "I'm up, ok?"

"Good boy," I said with a grin, kissing his cheek and patting him on the head.

Fifteen minutes later, Jake and I were on our way to the airport.

"You don't even know how much I've missed him," I breathed, practically bouncing up and down with excitement in the passenger seat. "I mean, really. It sucks when he goes away to school, and all…but he was out in the middle of nowhere for months. Kansas. It's so…so flat. No mountains anywhere. I think it must have been weird, looking around and not seeing any mountains."

"Freya, what did you have to drink this morning?" Jake asked me with a sigh.

"Oh…I was really tired, so Billy let me try a cup of his coffee. It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be, though. If you put a little cream and sugar in it, anyway. I tried it black, the way your dad drinks it, and it tasted kind of like tar, you know? Totally gross. Anyway, so now I'm totally awake. Coffee is like magic."

Jake shook his head, not bothering to stop me in my ramblings. I knew I was sounding like an idiot, thanks to being all hyped up on caffeine from the coffee. I made a mental note never to touch the stuff again. But there really wasn't a whole lot I could do about it now. I just let myself talk, knowing that Jake probably wouldn't hold too much of it against me.

It was about an hour and a half drive to the air port where Riff would be waiting for us. In the time it took to make the drive, I was able to calm down enough to not get thrown out by security once we arrived.

The airport was busy; crowded. It was a good thing Jake had been here a few times, to see his sisters off to school and such, because I had no idea where I was going. I'd never been in an airport before- never had a reason to. Dad didn't start travelling a lot until after Mom left us, and he never told us when he was leaving or when he was getting home, and Riff always drove to school.

Thus, I felt about as small and insignificant as that needle in a haystack you're always hearing about as I gripped Jake's hand as hard I was able, suddenly terrified of getting lost or run over. I followed where he led, trying to think up technical names for everything I was seeing. (I knew there was something called a terminal in here somewhere, but I couldn't quite remember what, exactly, that was).

Jake's hand was my rock- my anchor keeping me from turning around and running the other way. I was totally out of my element, here among all this tiled floor and concrete walls and crowds of people. I think he could sense my terror, or maybe he'd felt the same thing the first time he'd been at an airport, but he pulled me close to him and whispered in my ear. "It's ok," he assured me. "You're with me; you're safe."

I was with Jacob, so I was safe. I couldn't argue with that logic. My speeding heart calmed back down, and my hands stopped shaking. I regained control of my mind and my body, reminding myself that there were no predators here. No razor sharp teeth to leave ugly scars in my neck, no rock hard hands to wrap around my throat. I was with Jacob, so I was safe. Vampires don't attack in air ports.

When we finally found my parents, they smiled and waved at us exuberantly. I ignored my mother, but made a beeline to my father and wrapped my arms around his neck. "I've missed you so much!" I exclaimed, letting him twirl me around in a circle.

Suddenly, I was four years old again, and my father had just gotten home from his patrol in the woods. I was so excited to see him again…I shoved Riff out of my way, strong even then for my age, and launched myself into the air. Dad would catch me, and spin me around and around in a circle, until Mom came into the room laughing, reminding us that it was time for dinner…

My feet touched the ground again, and I was back in reality. "I've missed you," I said again with a sigh, burying my face in his chest. "Is Riff's plane getting in soon?" I was only too eager to get out of this airport.

"I'm sure you have more important things to do today, Freya, but it won't kill you to spend a couple hours waiting for your brother," my mother reprimanded me.

"Marissa," my father scolded her. He, of course, understood my discomfort. Werewolves simply did not like crowds. There were too many people, too many possible enemies waiting to jump out at you at any moment. My senses were in overdrive, looking, smelling, and tasting the air for any sign of vampires. It was really beginning to give me a headache.

"Here." My father handed me his bottle of water and a bottle of Tylenol. I took a couple tablets with a swig of water gratefully. Jake did the same, with a nod at my father, who smiled at the two of us before turning back to his wife.

"Let's go sit down," Jake offered, taking my hand and leading me to what seemed to me to be a type of food court, where we sat at an empty table.

"I hate air ports," I groaned, laying my head down on my arms on top of the table.

"Yeah, me, too," Jake replied, stroking my hair gently while I waited for the Tylenol to kick in. His presence was always calming to me. With him around, I was able to focus more on him, and less on the fact that anybody in this place could be a vampire I failed to spot, ready to tear me limb from limb, or worse…bite me again.

I never really talked about when I was bitten by Victoria. I still had the scar…it was ragged and ugly, rock hard and cold on my neck. I reached up to touch it now, an unconscious movement that had Jake looking at me in worry. The things I saw…the things I heard and felt when I was plagued by Victoria's venom. I never talked about it, to anybody. I hardly even thought about it. But no matter how well I repressed the memories when I was awake, I could never keep them away from my dreams.

It took his hand on my arm to snap me back to reality. "Freya," he whispered, his free hand brushing my cheek. "Frey, come back." His voice, his touch, drew me back, reminded me of what was real and what was not. I looked at him with a smile.

We sat there for a while, waiting for Riff's plane to get in. When, at last, my father came to find us, we followed him through the crowds of people and went to stand with a bunch of other people, several of which had signs with people's names on it.

"Why didn't we get Riff a sign?" I wondered out loud.

"Tony won't need a sign," my father chuckled. "He should recognize us just fine."

With a shrug, I slipped my hand into my father's, holding on tight. Jake took my other hand, and for a moment, I was with the two people I loved the most. My mother was there, too, and I guess I loved her well enough- even though I didn't trust her at all, and could hardly stomach the sight of her hand gripping my father's. As if reading my thoughts, Jake repositioned himself so that his hands were on my shoulders.

A crowd of people began swarming through a set of doors I hadn't noticed before. A few of them looked really tired, their hair askew from sleeping on the plane, and none of them seemed to have had their morning coffee quite yet. Others were wide awake, jumping up and down in an excited flurry with old friends and family members they haven't seen in months.

And then there was my brother.

"Riff!" I cried when I saw him, racing toward him and throwing my arms around his neck with such force, I think I may have knocked the air out of him.

His arms wrapped around my waist. "Yeah, I've missed you, too, little sis," he chuckled. "How have you been?" he asked. "Mom and Dad been treating you alright?"

"Well enough," I shrugged. "Oh, I'm just so happy you're back!"

It was then that I noticed the gigantic beast of a man standing awkwardly in the background, looking as lost and confused in the crowded space as I did.

"Oh, you must be Riff's friend from school!" I exclaimed, putting two and two together. Only Riff could find such an out of place guy in the middle of Kansas.

"Yup," Riff nodded with a grin. "This here is Karson Rocha. He's our new roommate in the apartment this year, but he lives out in Missouri, and he doesn't really have any place to stay until school starts. So I told him he'd be with us."

"Riff…I wish you'd told us," my mother began, eyeing Karson nervously. Judging by the way Riff wasn't leaping up to engulf her in a huge, bone-crushing hug, I was assuming that she'd either visited Riff in Kansas (unlikely) or he was just as ticked about her being here as I was. Lovely- it's always nice to have an ally.

"He can stay in my room," I offered automatically, forgetting about the sheer size of Karson as he stared down at me. I mean, I hung out with a pack of werewolves during my free time. He was a couple inches taller and broader than even Jake. I guess you forget things like that when your mom starts being all judgmental of people with weird names and broad shoulders. "It's not like I'm going to be using it for a while." I stuck that little reminder in at the end, just to see the way her face falls every time she remembers what she did to me.

Was it mean? Yup. Unnecessary? Probably so. Immature? Of course. These days, my mother never failed to bring out the worst in me.

"Freya," my mother sighed. "Your father and I…we were hoping that you would…" she shook her head, looking down at the tile floor, apparently unable to finish her sentence.

"Hoping I would what?" I asked my father.

"Hoping you would want to come back home," he explained. "We'll talk about that later, I suppose…for now, let's just go home."

Riff, Karson, Jake, and I stayed back behind my parents, letting them lead the way out to the cars. We walked slowly, careful to get far enough out of range that my father couldn't hear what we were saying over the buzz of the crowd.

"This should be far enough," Riff suggested, beginning to pick up the pace a little.

I grabbed his arm and pulled him back…only, someone else's hand had gotten there first. I looked up to see surprise written as clearly on Karson's face as it must have been on mine. "No…Riff, you know how good Dad's hearing is," I said with a weak chuckle. "Besides, the farther away I can get from that woman, the better."

I listened patiently, waiting for the moment when I would no longer be able to pick out my father's voice in the crowd. Riff looked to me for the cue that we had, in fact, gotten ourselves far enough behind my parents to not be overheard. When I could no longer hear their conversation over the babble of the people around us, I nodded.

"They're out of ear shot," I confirmed. "What's up, Riff?"

"You moved out," he accused. The death glare I got from my big brother was enough of a sign that Jacob decided to become better acquainted with Kyle, taking him farther up in the crowd where he wouldn't be able to hear our inevitable argument.

I watched them walk away, and shrugged. "You should have been there, when she came home. I left them alone for five minutes and they were totally making out all over the kitchen table. She acts like nothing's different, like she can just walk in and out of our lives whenever she wants to, expecting us to have hit the pause button for her…" I shuddered, remembering the silent meals, tense silences. "I couldn't take it anymore, Riff," I concluded. "Not by myself."

"Yeah…but now that I'm back…you could come back home," he suggested. "If you couldn't handle it, I don't think I can."

"You'll be fine," I assured him. "You…you aren't the reason she left. I am. I'm the one she couldn't stand to be around, not you. She actually loved you, Riff."

"She loved you, too," he assured me. "You just scared her a little. When you first transformed. I'm not going to lie- you scared me, too. Every time you go out on patrol, you scare me. Especially after I heard about your incident with Victoria. Going after her alone like that? What were you thinking?"

"Now isn't the time, Riff," I sighed, running my hand through my hair. "I'm not moving back home. I can't. Besides…Jacob's house is really nice. It reminds me of how our family used to be. Before I ruined everything."

"You didn't ruin anything," he said firmly, his hands on my shoulders and his gaze trapped on mine. "Stop acting like this is your fault. It isn't. It's hers. You know that, I know that. Dad might not know that, but she's his imprint, so I guess I understand. Kind of. Not as well as you, though. So stop being such an idiot."

I sighed, laying my head on his shoulder and allowing him to envelop me in a tight hug. "I missed you, Riff."

"Yeah, I missed you, too, Freya," he chuckled. "Come on…we should get going before Dad realizes he's lost his kids."

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**So...what did you think? :) Do you like the new character? You should be getting to know Karson very well by the time I'm done with this thing:D **

**Penny for your thoughts?;) **


	4. Respected or Feared

**Disclaimer: So...you've heard of that book, Twilight, right? And you've noticed that it's kind of similar to this story, I'm sure. Well...Twilight isn't mine. :D It's Stephanie Meyer's. All the original characters in this story, though, are mine...and most of the plot line. :D **

**Hey! I was so happy with all the reviews on chapter 3...thanks so much! You guys are the best!:D Thanks again to my beta, Rebecca Masen, for editing this chapter for me! You're amazing! :D **

**Ok, so...this is chapter four:) I know that so far this story has been way off with the plot line of Breaking Dawn, but don't worry- we'll get to that part soon enough:) Thanks a ton to everyone who's still reading these- it really means a lot to me:D Feel free to leave me a message or a review if you have any suggestions for this story, questions or anything:D Enjoy the chapter!**

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**Chapter Four**

The ride back home was lively, exciting. I wanted so badly for Riff to ride back in Jake's car with me, and of course Karson came with him. So the four of us climbed into Jake's tiny little car and talked, laughed, and exchanged stories for the next hour and a half back to the reservation.

I learned a little bit about Kyle, the friend Riff had stayed with. His family owned a small farm in the most rural parts of Kansas. It was a family business, so they didn't make a whole ton of money, but Riff said they preferred it to being tricked and cornered by the big food companies, like so many of his father's friends and colleagues had been over the years.

I did not, however, learn a single thing about Karson, except for that Riff met him on a trip with Kyle to deliver something to one of Kyle's father's friends down in Missouri. I guess they bumped into Karson, found out he was going to UCLA, and offered to let him room in their apartment next semester. They brought him back to Kyle's place, and then Riff brought him here, to the reservation. Karson himself didn't talk a whole lot.

Karson Roach was, as I mentioned earlier, big. He was about six and a half feet tall, and twice as thick as I was. He wore baggy T-shirts and oversized, faded out jeans, and carried just a small backpack around with him. He was quiet, calculating. I couldn't tell if that meant that Karson was cold or cruel…but if my brother had brought him home, he couldn't be too bad. Riff was generally a pretty good judge of character. Karson didn't say much, but I felt his eyes on me frequently, and he looked Jacob way more than once, as well. Kind of creepy, but hey- who was I to judge on creepy?

When we arrived at the house, my parents were already there, waiting for us I presumed. I took Jake's hand and led Karson and Riff into the house.

"Mom? Dad! We're home!" Riff called as we entered the house. He couldn't hear their whispers in their room upstairs, but I could. Guess they still hadn't decided what to make of Karson.

"They're upstairs," I sighed, flinging myself down on the couch, pulling Jake down with me in the process. "My guess is they're trying to find the nicest way to kick Karson out." I looked up at the giant. "No offense."

He shrugged, like he got that kind of thing a lot.

"Jake, what if…"

"No," Jacob answered automatically, somehow already able to tell what I was going to suggest. "Again, no offense, Karson," Jake shrugged to our new acquaintance. "You seem like a cool guy…buy my dad's pretty strict. I was barely able to convince him to let Freya stay with us."

"Shh," I hushed them, turning on the TV and pumping up the volume. The whispering had stopped upstairs; Dad was listening now. "So. What do you think the big deal is?" I asked Riff.

"What do you mean?" he frowned.

"Well…First off, Mom called me. She had the nerve to pick up the phone and _call_ me, to make sure I was going to be at the airport today. Even she knows me well enough I wouldn't have missed you coming home for anything. Second, Dad let us talk without telling us to hurry up and get to the car. He's not stupid; he knew what we were talking about. And he let us. Their car was gone from the parking lot, remember? Then they're upstairs whispering when we get home. Something's up, and it isn't just Karson showing up all of a sudden. Dad never covers things up. This is something big."

I let them soak up that brilliant web of logic and reasoning while I watched the latest episode of American Idol. (WTF? They're getting rid of Simon?) As they stared on in silent awe of my magnificent skills, I grinned to myself, getting ready for that glorious moment when I would be proved correct as I heard Dad making his way down the stairs, my mother right behind him.

Just to give her a small taste of how miserable she'd made my life in the past, I turned the volume up a little higher when my mother began to speak. I continued to do this until my father finally screamed, "FREYA SELENE LUST, TURN THAT TELEVISION OFF RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"

I've been attacked, tackled, and bitten by my father before- I had a faint pink line down my back to prove it- and I'd come out of the fight better off than he had. So I wasn't really afraid of my father. But I did respect him, and it wasn't my dad I was trying to tick off, so I turned off the TV and looked at him expectantly.

"Oh, Dad. I didn't even realize you and Mom were down here," I smiled innocently at him.

Jake snorted, and Riff rolled his eyes. Karson remained silent as ever.

"Karson," my mother began, turning to Riff's friend. "We're going to have to ask you to find another place to stay. I understand your situation, really, I do. But I don't think you understand ours." I looked over to Riff, _an I-told-you-so_! sort of smirk on my face. He stuck his tongue out at me. "Riff, Freya, please," my mother sighed. We quit our childish antics and focused our attention back on my mother. "Everybody…"

I waited anxiously for the announcement, the suspense of it all killing me slowly. I mean, really? Did she really have to drag it out like this? That's why I'd always liked my father better. He was concise, frank, blunt, and to the point. He didn't cut corners, or sugarcoat things. He always told it how it was. I'd always admired him for that.

"I'm pregnant."

That last sentence hung in the air, stagnant, filling up the room with its lack of movement. _I'm pregnant. _The words were horrific to me. How could this have happened? My brother or sister…it would be just one more person in the world to know about my secret, to know what I am. It would be one more person to judge me, to leave me…to fear me.

That's what hurt me the most. Everyone I loved…my mother, my brother. They were all terrified of me. Of what I became when I lost control. I knew what they saw me as. In their eyes, I was a monster.

"No," I said automatically, my eyes wide with horror. "No," I repeated, shaking my head. "No, that can't be right."

"Freya, honey, your father and I—"

"Dad…she's joking, right?" I asked, looking to my father for confirmation. Tears were beginning to spring to the corner of my eyes, threatening to fall. "Please, tell me she's joking."

He didn't say anything, just shook his head and wrapped his arms around his wife's stomach gently. It was his kid in there, after all, and Mother and Riff had never been afraid of him. He was older, more practiced than I. He was one to be respected, not feared.

"We were hoping that you would want to move back in, with us," my mother continued steadily, slowly- choosing her words very carefully. "To be with your new baby brother or sister."

"I…"

The remote, which I'd forgotten I was holding, dropped from my hands and onto the floor. My hands were shaking. I couldn't tell if it was out of anger or shock, or maybe it was fear. I didn't know, but Sam had made it very clear that several different emotions can trigger a transformation.

And I couldn't risk that here, especially not with Karson to see.

I wanted to phase, to run wild around the house, knock things over. I wanted to make the world crash down on everyone in the room, the way it was crashing down on me. But I couldn't do that. The need to phase was so powerful, so overwhelming, it scared me. Never before had I ever felt something like this. I was the one wolf who had never lost control.

I was losing it now.

"No," I said again, this time to myself. I clenched my hands into fists, so tightly that my nails cut into my palms. The sting and the smell of blood cleared my head a little, enough for me to get out of the house.

"Freya, come back!" my mother called after me as I raced for the back door.

"Let her go, Marissa," my father whispered in her ear. "She'll come back. She always does."

He seemed so sure. How did my father always know? He knew everything, I guess. So maybe I would come back. But I didn't see that happening in the near future, when the mere sight of that woman made my hands tremble.

I sprinted through the forest, digging more forcefully into my palms than before, the blood dripping down my hand. The pain kept me going, far enough into the woods so that nobody would see me change. I was deep enough into the damp darkness that nobody would know that Freya Lust had finally lost her cool.

As soon as I could no longer see the lights from the house, I let go.

**Jake**

"_I'm pregnant."_

Marissa was not a loud person, but those two words drew about as much attention as a gunshot. And by the look on Freya's face, she'd been shot straight through the heart.

I saw her begin to shake, and I met Markus's gaze. We both knew she needed to get out of the room. I saw him start to move toward her, but I shook my head. She needed to do this on her own. If I thought she was going to attack Marissa…I was more than capable of putting a stop to it.

I was right, of course. Soon after the shaking began, Freya was sprinting out the door.

"Freya, come back!" Marissa called after her, tears running down her face.

"Let her go," Markus told her. "She'll come back. She always does."

"Riff...take Karson up to the guest room, get him set up for the night. You guys can figure out where he's staying later. Markus…get your wife to calm down. I'm going to look for Freya." My instinct was kicking in now, seeing what needed to be done and making sure it happened.

"Thank you," Marissa said, taking my hand. "Thank you for taking care of my daughter, Jacob. It's nice to know that she's being taken care of, since she can't even bear to speak to me anymore." The tears began flowing again. I patted her arm, and left her to the care of Markus, before running out the door after Freya.

I was worried about how far she'd make it, before she phased. It was obvious that she'd been pretty close to losing her control, right there in the living room. I followed her path deeper into the woods, until I came across a scrap of the T-shirt she'd been wearing earlier. I took that as my cue to go ahead and phase.

_Freya,_ I called out to her. No answer. I knew she was fairly talented at hiding her thoughts from the pack- she practiced it often when we were on patrol together. She was hiding…but I was more attuned to her than the rest of the pack. She was there- I could feel her. _Clip, I know you're there. _

_Go away. _

I sighed, running in the direction her scent was leading me. _I'm not going to make you go back home, Frey. I promise. I'm not even going to make you talk to me about what happened. I just want to take you home. _

_I'll come home when I'm ready, _she responded bitterly. _If I try and phase now, I'm just going to phase back. There's really no point. _

_Where are you? _I asked her. If she wouldn't talk to me, and she wouldn't come home, I could at least be with her.

She showed me an image of the place. The trees were stained with red, and you could still see a few deep red spots on some of the leaves. It was the clearing where she and Victoria had battled it out.

I knew the place fairly well, and was able to get there quickly. Freya was there, lying in the same spot I'd found her lying before, with Victoria bent over her neck and blood pooling around her. I shook off the thought, and padded across the forest floor to where she was lying. I collapsed on the ground next to her, and placed my paw on top of hers. The gesture was so human…it would have been comical if someone had seen it.

She sighed, laying her head down on our paws, her golden fur shining in the moonlight. If it was true, and the legends about us were true…if we were monsters, then she was the most beautiful monster I'd ever seen.

I sat by her, silently, struggling not to think. She made it seem so easy, not thinking. I wasn't as good. She chuckled softly when she heard my cursing after my weak attempts had failed, and gave me a few pointers.

After a while, Freya decided that she was calm enough to head back home. When her back was turned, I phased, and put on my pair of cut-off shorts. She'd torn her clothes earlier, so she and I walked together, this beautiful, powerful werewolf and I, back to my home. I opened the front door, and she padded silently through the house to her bedroom, where she shut the door behind her.

I was beginning to get the feeling that I would be sleeping alone that night.

**Freya**

I felt bad, holed up in my room with the door locked after Jake had sat in the forest with me for what felt like hours while I calmed down. But…I didn't want him to see me like this. He couldn't see the tracks my tears had left on my face, or the splotches of red on my chest and cheeks, or how bright my golden-specked eyes had become when I was a wolf. I didn't want him to see me like that now- I didn't want anyone to see me like that now.

I thought about it for a moment. Going home, that is, to be with my mother, and the new baby, and Dad and Riff. Karson would be gone after a while, so I didn't include him in my fantasy, but I was able to imagine a world where my mother and I were not at war. It was…it was nice. But I couldn't forget what she'd done, couldn't keep myself form wondering if she would do the same thing to this child she's decided to have now…I couldn't bear the thought of it. It made me sick, to think of my mother abandoning us twice. She was an idiot, yeah. Weak, pathetic, and never thinks through her actions…but she wasn't cruel.

I couldn't go home, though. Not right now. Maybe, once the kid was actually here, and I could hold it in my arms…maybe then I would be able to forgive my mother, if only to keep my baby brother or sister from hating me when it grows up. But if I were to enter that house, right now?

I could feel the shaking start, just thinking about it. So, what was I gonna do about it?

Nothing. I could do nothing. My mother was going to have this child. It was going to hate me, it was going to be terrified of me. There was nothing I could do about that. I was a monster.

I guess I was just going to have to deal with that.

Since it was only about three in the afternoon, I wasn't surprised by the text waiting for me from my brother. He always had been protective; it would be just like him to ask me what happened and if I was doing ok. I opened the text, preparing myself for the faint stab of annoyance that always came when I was subjected to his brotherly worries and overprotection.

_Meet me at the beach, right after your midnight shift. Come alone. Riff_.

That's all the text said, and I didn't understand a bit of it. But it was Riff- so I could safely assume that this was kind of important. Or, at least, he thought it was. He was smart enough to know not to ask too much of a werewolf right after his or her patrol- especially when we had the late shifts. With a sigh, I tucked my phone into the pocket of my jean shorts and went to the bathroom to clean up a little.

As I waved goodbye to Emily after patrol that night, I couldn't help but ponder what exactly this was all about. Riff's text was fishy. I would need to be on my guard while we were talking about whatever it was that was so important that it had to wait until the dead of the night.

When I arrived at the beach, I checked to make sure no one was listening. The place was absolutely empty, as it should be at nearly one in the morning. I knew my eyelids were beginning to droop- I mean, people should be asleep by this time in the morning, not making secret meetings with their siblings.

"What's up?" I demanded as I came upon the dark form of my brother sitting on the old hollow log.

"Frey," he gasped. "Jeez. You've always been able to sneak up on me, huh?"

"I guess it's a wolf thing," I shrugged, grinning at him. "So. What's the big deal? Midnight meetings with your werewolf sister….. suspicious and kind of cliché- not really your style at all."

"It's about Karson," he admitted. "Look…are we alone?" he asked, looking around him, as if he would be able to see anyone lurking off in the distance.

"Already checked," I nodded. "It's clean. Jared's got this next shift, but he's not one to pry into other peoples' business, for the most part. He'll leave us alone. And don't worry about vampires. I'll be able to smell them coming. No one else should be able to hear us without us noticing."

Now that I'd eased his fear of being overheard, he was able to continue. "Like I was saying…it's about Karson. Mom can't kick him out."

"Why not?" I frowned. "It's her house. Kind of. She can kick out whoever she wants to kick out."

"No, I mean…we can't let her kick him out," he corrected himself. "He…he needs to stay with us for a while. It's important."

"What do you mean?"

"Frey…I lied," he admitted. "Kyle and Karson never met. We aren't going to room together next semester. He isn't even in college- he's only about a year older than you are. I found him hiding out in one of the barns at Kyle's farm, decided to take him home with me."

"Why did you take him home, then?" I asked. "I mean…why not report him to the police, or something?"

"Here's the sticky part," he said with a small smile. "He reminded me of you."

"Of me?"

"Yeah, the way you were when you fist started phasing. Nervous, territorial. You always smelled like a wet dog, and every little sound sent you into full alert mode. He reminded me of a werewolf still getting used to being a werewolf."

"You think…you think he's a werewolf," I clarified, frowning. "No. He can't be. I would be able to tell."

"Are you sure?" he asked me. "Have you ever met a wolf outside your pack before?"

"No, but…"

"Then who's to say I'm wrong?" he challenged. "Karson's a werewolf, and a young one, too. He needs your help, Freya."

"Listen," I sighed, running my hands through my hair. "If he is as young as you think he is…like you said, he'll be on full alert mode. Flinching at every sound, always underestimating his own strength. His self-preservation instinct would be going crazy, too. He would have never let you find him in that barn if he were a wolf. He would have hidden better."

"What if he wanted to be found?"

I thought about that for a moment. I suppose it was possible- Karson wanting Riff to find him. But why?

"Maybe," I admitted. "You get me more proof that your new friend is a werewolf, and I'll see what I can do. For now…keep him out of trouble, ok? If Mom talks about giving him the boot, let me know. I'll do what I can to either keep him in the house or give him a place to stay."

"Thanks, Frey," Riff sighed.

"Yeah…well…keep an eye on him. If my pack gets into trouble because there's a young werewolf stomping around the reservation without a pack, I'll know who to blame."

It took him a little while to realize I was joking, but once he did, he just rolled his eyes and wished me goodbye. I offered to walk him back to the house, but he refused, saying he wasn't a little kid and didn't need a babysitter. So, of course, I let him leave without me, and then followed him, watching the trees for any signs of something sinister lurking about.

I watched Riff open the front door and step inside the house, and then I looked up to my bedroom window. The lights were on, and the blinds open.

I made sure to wave at Karson before turning around and making my way back home for the night.

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**Ooo...so Karson's becoming a bit more mysterious, huh? :D Ok, so, I really hope you all liked this chapter:D I'll try and have chapter 5 up ASAP! **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	5. Bella's Back!

**Disclaimer: Twilight isn't mine. Wish it were...but it's not. So...yeah. :D **

**Ok...so my beta hasn't gotten to this one yet. I didn't want to keep you all waiting for too long, so I'm going to go ahead and post this now, and when she sends me the updated chapter, I'll post that. So please excuse any grammar/spelling mistakes you may find! :D I hope you enjoy chapter 5! **

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**Chapter Five**

The next morning was Monday- the first day of my senior year of high school. I was kind of nervous and terrified that I would forget something, so I made sure to get up super early so that I would have time to take a shower and make myself pretty before Jake even woke up. The shower was heaven- the hot water worked its magic, as always, and pretty soon, all my pre-school jitters had evaporated. This was my senior year. It was going to be awesome, and I was going to have the time of my life.

With this mindset, I went about my morning in a cheerful mood. I sang along to my iPod as I brushed my hair and did my makeup, even using the hairbrush as a microphone at one point. Then I realized that not only was this not my house, but that my boyfriend was sleeping in the next room. I put the hairbrush down, but continued my singing.

Jake didn't get up until maybe seven. I'd been up for a couple hours, and had already gotten myself ready for school and made a batch of chocolate chip scones for breakfast. I was munching on one, a glass of milk at my side, when he entered the kitchen wearing only a pair of his old, faded jeans and his wet hair dripping on the floor.

"Jake, you can't walk around shirtless at school, you know," I laughed when I saw him. I took a couple of scones off the baking pan, put them on a plate, and poured him a glass of milk. I sat back down at the table to finish eating my own delightful creation.

"Too bad," he sighed. "It would make getting a date to Homecoming a lot easier."

"True," I nodded thought fully. "Hurry up and get dressed once you're done eating. It's already ten after seven and we really don't want to be late the very first day."

Five minutes later, we were in his car, making our way toward the school. (Jake can eat really, really fast when he wants too. I guess my scones hadn't turned out too bad after all.) It was a quiet drive. Jake seemed to be exhausted- he was never much of a morning person. I just didn't have anything to say. It was a beautiful morning, and my attention was caught by the way the dew sparkled on the grass by the side of the road.

When we arrived at the school, Jake parked his car in the school lot, and we walked together up to the front doors. I saw a couple of my old friends- kids I'd sat by in music, or been partners with for an English project- and waved to them. They waved back happily enough.

"So I guess Freya's with Jacob Black now, huh? I guess they are perfect for each other- they both think they're too good to hang out with anyone outside their little cult," one of the girls whispered when my back was turned.

Ouch. I knew people had been talking about me since I became what I was…but I'd never been able to hear it before. Usually people waited until I was out of the room, so I'd only catch little bits of the conversation- my name, mostly. But this? This had happened right behind me, where I'd have been able to hear it even if I had regular human hearing. Listening to my friends talk about me this way was…well, it felt like a punch in the gut, to be honest. It hurt.

"They aren't worth it, Frey," Paul whispered in my ear, coming up beside me and grabbing my other hand. "I can take them out after school, if you want," he offered. The way his eyes lit up made me think that not only was he being perfectly serious, but he was looking forward to it.

"They aren't worth it, Paul," I parroted him with a grin. "But thanks for the offer. I appreciate it." The rest of the pack found us soon after, and we walked into the school together. With my brothers laughing along beside me, it was only too easy to ignore the glares, stares, and comments of the people around us.

It was an unspoken rule that when you're in a pack, you never go anywhere by yourself. We wolves looked out for each other. This rule applied to school, as well. In every single one of my classes, I had at least one of my pack members with me. Somehow, Sam managed to pull this off every year- even last year, before I'd turned. He must have known it was going to happen, because I'd had two or three werewolves in each of my classes then, keeping an eye on me.

This year, the entire pack had been placed in first hour Weights and Conditioning. It was a real waste of time for us- I mean, I could already bench more than any of the guys on the football team. But four years of P.E. were required, so I was stuck there.

We trooped together down to the weight room, laughing and talking as we went. When we arrived, it turned out that the thirteen of us made up the entire class. The teacher, Coach McCaw, had had all of us in class for the past four years- with the exceptions of Brady and Collin, who were indeed freshmen. So when he noticed that his whole class was present, he told us to go ahead and get started, and that he was going down to the nearest gas station for a coffee.

"So…I guess we're just supposed to…" I trailed off, watching my pack swarm the weight room. "Ok, then," I grinned. I chose my equipment, set it to the highest setting, and got to work.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. We were given syllabi in every class- except for Weights…Coach McCaw used the same syllabus for each of his classes every year, and I guess he'd decided that we didn't need it. They needed to be signed by a parent…so I guess I would be paying a visit to my father that night after patrol.

When the bell finally rang at 2:30, the whole school seemed to jump up off its feet and rush for the nearest exit. It was never fun, fighting the crowds like this…but I was anxious to get home. I had patrol to run, papers to get signed, and sleep to catch up on.

After my patrol that afternoon, I came back to Jake's place to fling my backpack over my shoulders before heading home to get my papers signed. I explained to Jake where I was going, kissed him goodbye, and before I knew it, I was reaching up for the spare key above the front door of my parents' house.

"Hello!" I called, letting myself in. "Anybody home?"

I was barely able to hear the quiet footsteps as Karson made his way down the stairs. "Freya," he greeted me with a nod.

"Hey, Karson," I smiled at him. "Where are my parents? Or Riff. He'll do, too, I guess. He can forge a signature better than I can, at any rate."

"They're out," he shrugged. "Should be back soon, though."

He never did talk much, did he? "Well…do you mind if I wait around here until someone shows up?" I asked him, already inching my way toward the staircase.

"Not my house," he shrugged.

"I'm just going to go take a shower real quick, then," I nodded. "You're staying in my room, right?" I asked. He nodded. "Then I'll stay out of there as much as I can. I'd hate to be intruding on your space, or anything."

"Again- it isn't my house," he repeated himself. "I'm the one intruding on your space."

"It's cool," I shrugged. "It's not like I'm using that room much anymore. Hey, I'll be right back," I reminded him before heading up the stairs.

I entered my room, and a wave of nostalgia rushed over me. I remembered all the things that had happened in this room. All the nights Jake used to sneak up here to talk when we were younger, the first time I phased, ripping my Homecoming dance to shreds…or was it Court Warming? I remembered the night I'd punched Jake, and how he'd come and apologized…and how he, Bella, and I had spent the rest of the night watching Lord of the Rings together, right there on the bed.

With a sigh, I headed over to the closet, pleased to find that all my things were still right where I'd left them. I pulled out a pair of jeans and a turquoise tank top, and got myself a fresh towel out of the closet in the hall. I made my way to the bathroom and started the shower.

I could hear people talking downstairs, which meant that someone was home. I couldn't tell who it was…they were talking too low for me to catch what they were saying. I was guessing that it was Riff or Dad, since Mom never really had been quite able to grasp how good my hearing had become.

But once I got out of the shower, dressed, and was toweling my hair dry, I could hear them much, much better.

"…can't let you stay here, Karson," my father was saying. "There just…won't be enough room for you. I'm sorry."

"I understand, Mr. Lust," Karson replied.

"Dad! You're home!" I exclaimed, running down the stairs toward him. "Wow. I wasn't expecting you to be back so early!"

"Freya!" he exclaimed, a grin spreading across his face. "It's so nice to see you coming down those stairs again. Have you decided to come home yet?" he wondered, the look on his face pathetically hopeful.

"Um, no," I replied flippantly. "But I do need you to sign a couple of things for school. Here." I thrust the papers at him, along with a pen. While he read them over, I turned to Karson. "So, have they offered you the room in the basement?" I asked him.

"Freya," my father warned me, the hint of a growl in his voice.

"Oh…we just had the basement finished, last year. It was supposed to be for guests. You're a guest. I guess I was just putting two and two together, is all, Dad," I added at the end, looking at my father with wide eyes.

"He can't stay here," he repeated.

"Why not?" I demanded. "Where else is he going to go? You can't just kick him out, Dad."

"It's my house, Freya," he scolded me. "I have the right to kick out anybody I want. If you don't like it…well, tough. Karson, you're going to have to find some other place to stay. I'm sorry."

"Dad, you can't do this," I emphasized.

"Discussion's over," my father ordered. "I'm through arguing about this."

"Yeah, well, I'm not," I replied, taking the pen and papers from his hand. "Thanks for signing those."

"You're welcome. You will come visit us more often now, won't you?" he asked. "If not for your mother, then for me and your brother." Speaking of my mother, she'd just entered the house. I tried my best to ignore her as she made her way across the living room and into the kitchen.

"Of course," I sighed, running my hands through my hair and glaring at my mother's back. I turned to Karson. "I'm going to find a place for you," I promised him. "Don't you doubt that."

"Freya, you don't have to—"

I cut him off. This was no longer a matter of what he wanted, or what he needed. This was about my pride now, and there was no way I was going to fail. I would find Karson a place to stay, even if it killed me. Kind of dramatic, yeah…but werewolves can be very prideful creatures.

"I'll find you a place, Karson," I repeated myself. I looked over my father's shoulder, where my mother was standing in the kitchen. Her eyes met mine, and finally, for the first time since she'd come home, she didn't avert her gaze. She just stared at me, strong in some conviction of hers. Maybe she was starting to get the feeling that she belonged here. She wasn't going to let me try and chase her away anymore.

Well. It was about time that woman grew a spine.

"I'll see you later, Dad," I nodded at my father before I left. "It was nice seeing you, Mom," I glanced back at her. Her eyes went wide, and for a second I thought I saw her almost flash a smile. Before I could see that smile light up her face, before I could let it soften me further, I turned around and walked briskly out the door.

The next week or so was fairly…well. It was pretty boring. I mean, I went to school, went on patrol, and did my homework. I'd visit my parents every once in a while, to assure them that, yes, I was still looking for a place for Karson.

Which was total crap, by the way. I would find a place for him…later. When their threat to kick him out became tangible…when I believed they would actually follow through. For now, they were letting Karson stay with them until I found him another place, which meant that I could focus my attention on more important things…like hanging out with my brother before he left for school.

Yup. Things were boring right now…but that wasn't always a bad thing. In fact, I was beginning to really get used to it.

Bella

I could hardly believe this was happening. This _couldn't _be happening. It was impossible. I'd taken health class- and I was pretty sure that vampires should not have been able to father children.

Yet, here I was, standing in the kitchen of Esme's island getaway, my hand resting over a small, defined bump that definitely hadn't been there when I'd gone to bed last night.

It was unbelievable…and wonderful, all at the same time. I couldn't help but keep picturing his face…the beautiful face of this child that had somehow begun growing inside me. It was crazy, and a miracle.

And Edward wanted to kill him.

The panic was strong, now that I'd realized the reason for Edward's frantic preparations to get back home. At first, I'd thought he'd wanted to get me straight to Carlisle, to get me checked out by a doctor, to make sure the baby and I were doing alright.

It was only too clear to me now that this wasn't the case.

Abortion. I'd never been particularly for it, or against it, either. I could understand abortion if a girl had been raped. I didn't like it, but I would be able to understand if a rape victim chose to have one. Now that I was pregnant myself, I found the idea of killing an unborn child to be appalling, unethical, and downright wrong.

This is what Edward wanted to do to my child- his child, too. Our baby…dead before it could ever exist. I couldn't let that happen. I would _not _let that happen.

"Are we leaving soon?" I called to him as he left for the bedroom to unpack my toothbrush.

Handing it to me, he responded, "As soon as you're done."

I finished brushing my teeth quickly, handing him the toothbrush to repack.

"I'll get the bags into the boat," he offered, picking up the hundred some pounds of baggage in two hands easily, as if they were empty except for a few pairs of socks or something.

"Edward?"

"Yes?" he answered, putting the bags down and turning to face me once again.

I wanted a few minutes alone, but I wasn't sure how exactly to get that. Edward was in a hurry. He wanted to pack our things and get out of here as soon as possible. Finally, I thought of something that he wouldn't refuse me. "Could you…pack some of the food? You know…in case I get hungry again." I smiled sheepishly at him, hoping my acting had improved since I'd married him.

"Of course," he nodded, his eyes soft. Maybe I had improved my acting. "Don't worry about anything. We'll get to Carlisle in just a few hours. This will all be over soon."

I nodded, not trusting my voice not to crack, thus ruining my act. He left the room with both suitcases, and as soon as I was sure that he was gone, I whirled around and picked up the cell phone he'd left on the counter.

Weird…Edward didn't usually forget about little things like that. He was really stressing out…which was making me really stress out. Which was making me really, really want a bar of chocolate or something.

I shook off the thoughts of food, and got down to business.

If I was going to save my baby, there was something I needed to do.

Finally, I found the name on his contact list I was looking for. I hit "send", and prayed with all my heart that she'd pick up her phone.

"Hello?"

"Oh, thank God, you answered," I breathed. "Look…it's Bella. You have to help me- please."

Freya

They say that a good friend will always be there for you, no matter how long it's been since you've seen them.

Maybe that's why Bella chose to call me. I'd known her since I was little- we'd played together on the beach when she'd still visited Charlie during the summers. We'd been friends long before she ever met any of the Cullen's.

At any rate, the saying must be true, because as soon as I hung up the phone, I ran home to borrow Riff's car, and was on my way to the airport.

I found the Cullen's quickly, and hurried over to them. They looked surprised to see me, so I put on a huge, incredibly fake smile and thought of the happiest thing I could think of- for Jasper's sake- and exclaimed, "Bella texted me! I'm so excited that they're coming home!"

They just sort of nodded, looking at me with an expression that almost resembled pity. We waited longer, until at last, I saw Bella emerge from the crowd.

"Freya!" she exclaimed, running right to me. Pretty soon, she'd begun to sob, tears streaking down her face.

"It's ok, Bella," I whispered in her ear, feeling her stomach pressing against mine. Whoa. I'd know that she'd said she was pregnant on the phone…but I didn't think she'd be this pregnant. "Don't cry, ok? You don't need to cry. Things are going to work out fine."

She nodded, burying her face in my shoulder while I tried to comfort her. Over Bella's shoulder, I saw Edward standing there, slack-jawed, hallow, and enraged.

"Come on, Bella," I whispered to her, leading her away from the group of vampires who were all too surprised to even speak. "I've got Riff's truck." I turned my face around to look at the Cullen's. "I'll meet you at the house," I called to them.

In the car, I helped Bella buckle the seat belt before climbing in on the other side of the truck.

"Thank you for coming," Bella sniffed, wiping at her eyes. "I…I didn't know who else to call."

"You're welcome," I nodded, sticking the keys in the ignition, but hesitating to turn them. "But Bella…please tell me that you've thought this through. I get where you're coming from, and I'll support you no matter what you decided…but you do know what could happen, don't you? You know that you very well could be dead when all of this is over?"

Her expression hardened, and I saw in her eyes a strength I hadn't known was there. "I know," she nodded. "I won't let them kill him. I won't let it happen. And Freya?" she turned to me, her eyes pleading now.

"Yes?"

"You have to promise me something," she said, her tone urgent.

"Anything, Bells."

"You have to promise me that no matter what happens, whether I live or die, that you will not let them hurt him. His life is more important to me than mine is. I'm terrified that…once he's born…that they'll…they'll…" the tears started flowing again, at the thought of what they might do to her baby.

"Bella," I said her name, my voice steady as I looked her straight in the eye. "I won't let that happen. I will do everything I can to keep him safe…and you, too. If there is anything I can do to keep either of you alive…I'll do it."

She nodded, calmed and assured by my vow. "Let's go home, then," she sniffed.

"Yes," I agreed with a sigh. "Let's go home."

* * *

**ooo...Edward is NOT happy with Freya right now:D The next chapter should be interesting...I wonder, how will the Cullens react to Freya's defense of Bella? Just kidding- I don't wonder. I already know- I finished chapter six yesterday xD Guess you guys are all going to have to wait until I get the next chapter up to find out, huh? hehe:D **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	6. Well, This Kind of Sucks

**Disclaimer: Twilight isn't mine...in case the point hasn't quite gotten across to you quite yet;) **

**Alrighty then...so I just want to say thanks to everybody who's been reviewing this story:) You guys...you're amazing. I probably would have quit writing this around chapter 4 of the prequel to this story if it weren't for you guys:) Thank you SOOO much! And thanks to my ever-wonderful beta, Rebecca Masen, for being so incredibly awesome and editing these chapters for me. :D **

**I hope you enjoy this chapter! :D**

* * *

**Chapter Six**

I'd seen the way Edward drives- he was a maniac. I should have assumed that he would be even more of a maniac when he was freaking out about the fact that his wife was pregnant. Instead, I was actually surprised when I saw that they had not only beaten us to the house, but seemed to have been waiting for us for a while. I parked the truck outside the house, and turned to Bella.

"Freya," she whispered, grabbing my arm as I took the keys out of the ignition.

"Yup?" I unbuckled my seatbelt, and then hers, before unlocking the car door.

"Stay with me," she pleaded. "Please."

"Of course," I nodded.

"I mean it," she shuddered. "I…I know he's going to be angry with me. I'm not going to change my mind…but I need someone to remind me why I can't. Can you do that for me, Frey?"

"I promise," I smiled at her. "Come on, we might as well get this over with. Stay- I'll open the door for you." She nodded, and waited while I made my way to the other side of the car to open her door.

Somehow, Edward had already beaten me to the door, and was helping her out of the car. I had no idea when he'd left the house, or how he'd managed to get to the car so quickly without me noticing. With a shrug, I followed him to Bella's door where Edward was holding out his arm for her- a gentleman, even while committing murder.

Edward glared at me for a moment. "It isn't like that," he snipped.

I shrugged. "That's how Bella made it sound."

"Freya," she whimpered, holding out her other arm for me to take. I grabbed onto her free hand and squeezed gently, sending an encouraging smile her way.

Edward and I led her up to the house. I watched patiently as he got her set up on the couch, and ordered her to lie down. She did so, making sure there was enough room at the foot of the couch for me to sit.

"Go ahead and spread out, Bells," I said shaking my head. "Get comfy while you can. By the look of it…you won't be able to for much longer."

She thought about it for a moment, then quickly did as I suggested. I took a seat on the floor in front of her.

The Cullen's were watching us, watching the way I had my arms crossed over my chest, the way my eyes were narrowed, waiting for anyone to try and make a move for her. They watched the grateful way Bella was watching me- I'd turned around a couple times to make sure she'd gotten herself comfortable, and had seen the expression there in her eyes. They watched…and I'm pretty sure most of them were furious.

"Freya, move aside," Edward ordered me.

"No."

"Freya…this is important," he emphasized. "We have to get that…that _thing_ out of Bella before it hurts her."

"Sorry, buddy," I shrugged. "I can't let you do that."

"She could die," he hissed. "Has she mentioned that?"

"Actually, I was the one who had to mention that to her. Yeah, she knows. I made sure she knew, believe me. But…" I shrugged. "She's never had great self-preservation instincts." I turned around and smiled at my friend. "No offense, or anything."

"No…no, it's true," she chuckled.

"This is ridiculous," Jasper sighed. "Bella, listen to us. This is what's best for you. Forget about the…whatever it is. Forget it. Its life isn't as important as yours."

"How dare you!" Bella cried, shooting up, her eyes flaming and the beginnings of another tear fest trickling down her cheek.

"Bella, shh," I hushed her, wiping her tears away and gently pushing her back down onto the pillows. "He didn't mean it," I whispered in her ear. "He's just scared."

She nodded, and I knew that deep down, she understood why everyone was trying to kill her child. It was because they loved her. I loved her, too…and if she hadn't called me, I might have been on their side. But she did call me- she called _me_, out of all the other people she could have called for help. _Me._ I couldn't help but feel the weight of this responsibility, of my vow to protect her kid. Maybe I was being stupid. Bella definitely was being stupid. But this was what she wanted…and I wanted her to be happy.

"I'm not sure that was the best way to phrase that, Jasper," I sighed. "You know how she feels. You can feel it. I know you can. So stop pretending like you can change her mind, because you can't. If you could…then it would have been changed already."

"You think this is a bad idea, too," Edward accused me. Lovely- he'd heard my little internal speech earlier. "If she hadn't called you, you would have sided with me." I couldn't tell if he was angry, or if he was just…making an observation.

"Bells, look…don't put Freya through this," Jasper pleaded, playing on her emotions. "Don't make her stand up to the rest of us like this. Can't you see that this is hurting her?"

I looked at Bella- her bottom lip was trembling, confused. She looked at me sadly, and I knew she was wondering if this was hurting me. That's just the kind of person she was. She couldn't bear hurting her friends. Jasper knew that about her- and was feeding off her compassion to get what he wanted.

"You," I glared at him, pointing my finger accusingly. "You have no right to mess with her head like that. She's pregnant, scared, and confused- and you aren't helping anything."

"Freya, please," Bella whispered, and I felt her hand on my shoulder. "He's right. I shouldn't be doing this to you."

"Bella, listen to me," I said, turning to her. "I'm not going to lie to you. I don't like this- I don't like the thought of you, getting hurt. It _kills_ me." There were tears in the corners of my eyes now, and I could tell she was about to break down, too. "But Bells…I'm your friend, and friends support each other. This is your decision, not mine- not theirs. If this is what you want, then I'm going to do everything in my power to help you get it."

"Thank you," she whispered.

I just shrugged, crossing my arms in front of my chest again.

The vampires looked frustrated…but none of them wanted the treaty broken. If they attacked me, I'd have to attack back…and goodbye treaty. My pack would be all over this coven like frosting on a cupcake. None of us wanted that.

Finally, Esme sighed, and took a step forward toward Bella. I tensed, but she only gave me a sad smile.

"You're very brave, Freya," she complimented me. "I know what it's like to lose a child. No one should have to go through that." Esme settled herself down next to me. Rosalie joined us- why, I have no idea. I'm sure her reasoning was self-absorbed and ridiculous, but I was glad for the extra body guard.

Carlisle wouldn't dare to harm Bella if Esme stood in his way- Emmett wouldn't allow something Rosalie didn't want.

So Bella was safe…for now.

"Go to sleep, Bella," I whispered. "We've won this battle."

She nodded, and closed her eyes.

After that, the room sort of emptied out. Carlisle went with Esme to the kitchen to try and find something for Bella and myself to eat, and Edward was sitting in a chair next to Bella's couch, stroking her hair and holding onto her hand. I don't know where everyone else went, and honestly, I didn't care. I just stayed by Bella's side, like I'd promised her I would.

I guess I'd be missing a lot of school, huh?

"Carlisle?" I called softly, knowing he would be able to hear me, even in this huge house. Soon enough, he was standing in front of me.

"Yes?"

"You think I should call my parents?" I asked. "Let them know I'll be missing school for a while?"

"You won't be missing any school, Freya," he chuckled. "That's hardly necessary. We've already established that we wouldn't hurt the fetus. You're part in this is over; you can go home whenever you like."

I knew he meant to be kind, to let me know that my efforts were appreciated, and that I didn't have to stand watch any more. I knew that he meant well…and that was the only thing keeping me from yelling at him. "I'm here because Bella asked me to stay," I shrugged. "So I'm staying. I just wanted to know what the story was, so that I could tell my dad what's up."

"We don't have a story yet," he sighed. "But we'll figure one out in time, and we'll let you know."

I nodded, and relaxed my position once more. Not really in the mood to talk, I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. Pretty soon, Carlisle had left, leaving me with Bella and Edward.

This went on for a couple of days. Eventually, we decided that Bella had caught an exotic disease in Rio on her honeymoon with Edward, and she had unintentionally given it to me when I'd greeted her at the airport. We were both being quarantined.

"Oh, God, Freya, are you alright?" my father asked, sounding incredibly worried.

"Dad, I'll be fine," I chuckled, letting out a wicked cough. "Sorry about that. I'll be fine, Dad- Dr. Cullen's taking care of me and Bella right now. We're fine…just sick. But we're real contagious, and trust me, you do not want to get what we have." I let out another noise, somewhere between a puke, a cough, and a sneeze. "Ew. Yeah, you don't want this. I'll come home when Dr. Cullen deems me healthy enough, ok?"

"Freya…"

"Dad. Please. If you get sick, Mom might get sick. If Mom gets sick…"

"The baby gets sick. Yes, yes, I know, Freya." He sighed, and I could just see him running his hands through his hair, making it stick up wildly at the back. I could see my mother coming up behind him to straighten it out. "You'll call?" he asked.

"Every day," I promised.

"If you aren't feeling up to it…you don't have to call every day, just when you're feeling well enough."

"Of course, Dad."

"I love you baby," he reminded me.

"I love you, too, Daddy. Take care of Riff and Mom for me. Don't kick out Karson."

"We won't," he sighed. "If you promise to come back home once you're better."

I thought about this for a moment. I didn't want to come back home…I really didn't. Mom still made me kind of mad whenever I looked at her. But…I was lying to him. I wasn't really sick…I was lying to him. I was outright lying to my father, and I hated it. I owed him. With a sigh, I nodded. "Yeah, I'll…I'll come back home when Carlisle lets me leave. I'll try it out. One more time- for your sake."

"Thank you, Freya," he breathed. "I can't even tell you how much we've missed you."

"I've missed you, too, Dad," I admitted. "I'll be home as soon as I can, ok?"

"Ok. I love you."

"Love you, too. Bye."

Before he could get me to promise him anything else, I hung up the phone.

Over the course of the next week, Bella's condition began to deteriorate. She grew thinner, paler, weaker; her stomach grew larger. Her voice was hoarse when she did feel like talking, and she could hardly keep down her dinner. We were all getting really worried. Our main game plan at this point was to wait until the baby was ready to be born, and hope and pray that Bella was strong enough to last through that.

It wasn't looking good, though.

I did stand by my promise. I hardly left Bella's side. I was her protector- every time I got up to use the bathroom or get her another glass of water, she had a small panic attack. Edward had to reassure her that her baby was safe. Eventually, his velvet-smooth voice would lure her back to sleep.

Yup- she wasn't doing great.

About a week after Bella and Edward's return to Forks, I smelled a familiar scent on the porch.

"It's Jake," I grinned, and Carlisle hurried to answer the door before Jake even had the chance to knock.

"Hello, Jacob," Carlisle greeted him. "How are you?" His voice was calm, steady; there was nothing in his tone to suggest that there was anything wrong. I was about to get up to greet him…but Alice was at my side, holding me down and shaking her head.

"I heard Bella made it back alive," Jake said casually. I wondered if he could smell me in here, the way I could smell him when he came to the door? Probably not- the stench of vampire was probably covering up my scent.

I wondered if he'd been worried about me. I hadn't gotten to call him yet…Carlisle had said to wait a couple of days, and that Jake would understand. But would he? Would he understand what I was doing for Bella, and most importantly- would he understand _why?_ If not…well…I was beginning to really fear for the wellbeing of our relationship.

"Er…Jacob…it's really not the best time. Could we do this later?" And with that, Carlisle blew his calm façade. Way to go Carlisle- way to go. I can officially keep up an act longer than the century plus-old-vampire.

"Why not?" Bella called from behind me. Crap- I hadn't even known she was awake. This could get real sticky, real quick. "Are we keeping secrets from Jacob, too? What's the point?" Her voice was hoarse, and kept cracking. I handed her a glass of water, which she drank from greedily.

"Come in, Jacob, please," she said when Carlisle still hadn't moved from the doorway.

"Carlisle, you might as well let him in," I sighed. "He's not going to leave just because you're standing there menacingly in the doorway."

"Freya! Oh, God, Freya!" he gasped, making his way quickly across the threshold. I leapt up from the floor, grinning, and ran to meet him. Soon enough, I was in his arms. "I thought you were dead, honestly," he breathed, his fingers trailing down my face.

"I'm not," I swallowed, suddenly very nervous. "You…you don't hate me, do you?" I asked, biting my lip. I was honestly terrified of his reaction now…if he didn't understand why I was doing what I was doing, I didn't know what I'd do.

Now try saying _that_ five times fast.

"Hate you?" Jake frowned. "Why would I hate you?" Of course- I'd forgotten. He didn't know what was wrong with Bella…what would probably end up happening to her when this was all over. He was blissfully, totally ignorant of Bella's impending death, that lucky duck.

"Freya, help me up," Bella ordered, holding her hands out to me.

"No, just lie down," I soothed her. Her face was looking a little green, and I was about to run to the kitchen for a bowl or something, but Edward beat me to it. He was at her side, holding the kind of bowl I would normally use for popcorn up underneath her chin. I pulled her hair back just in time, before she threw up the contents of the lunch we'd been trying to get her to eat just a little while earlier.

"Bella…" Jake reached for her, wanting to help but still not really sure how.

"There. I'm done- and I'm sorry you had to see that, Jacob," she said with a sheepish smile. "Now…Freya, help me up. I want to show him what this is all about," she demanded. "Help me up, or I'll get up myself."

"Pushy, pushy," I chuckled nervously, making my way to her. One hand on her back, and one on her arm, I helped her stand up slowly. She was shaky on her feet, and obviously shouldn't be standing the way she was. She was leaning most of her weight on me, and breathing hard from the effort…but her point had been made. The swell of her stomach could be clearly seen from this angle.

"I'm pregnant," Bella said.

Those words…they made me shudder. She'd said it in the exact tone my mother had when she'd made her announcement a week before. It was a tone that implied that she knew the news would not be received well, but that she honestly didn't give a shit. She was happy for herself, so it didn't matter what anyone else thought.

"Ok, he's seen you," I whispered to her. "Lie back down, Bells, before you hurt yourself." She nodded, and allowed me to lower her down onto the couch."

"This could be bad," Jake mused.

"I know," I nodded, biting my lip. "Not just for Bella's wellbeing…but does Sam know?"

"He thinks the treaty might have been broken," Jake admitted. "He wasn't sure. I…I came down here against orders. I wasn't supposed to come…but I had to see for myself. If she was…you know. I had to see if the story about you two was true."

"Well, it is," I said, looking him straight in the eye. "Bella and I are very, very sick. And we don't want any visitors. Especially the wolfy kind. Can you handle that, Jake?"

"Freya…I don't know," he admitted. "I don't know if I can keep this a secret from them…that's more your area of expertise."

"But I'm currently being quarantined with Bella," I reminded him. "I showed you how to hide your thoughts, Jake. Use that. They can't know about Bella. If they find out that she's pregnant with Edward's child…you know what they'll do, Jake." My gaze locked with his, held it steady as I emphasized how important it was the Sam did not find out about Bella's pregnancy.

"Look, Frey…you don't know Sam like I do," Jake laughed. "He's a good guy. He wouldn't kill Bella just because her kid _might_ present a threat to the reservation. He works on hard fact, not on assumptions."

"Jake…" I sighed, running my hands through my hair. "I'll be right back, Bells," I promised her, squeezing her hand before standing up and taking Jake outside to the Cullen's garage. Once I was fairly certain we were far enough away so that Bella couldn't hear what we were saying, I continued. "Sam can be ruthless, when he thinks he has to be. I've seen his light. It's not…it's not bright. Not like yours. Sam can be dangerous, Jake."

"I know that," he nodded. "But I honestly don't think that he would kill Bella. It would be ridiculous. It would be breaking the treaty. The treaty's always been the most important thing to Sam, when dealing with the Cullen's. If it isn't on his property, it isn't his problem."

"Jake, you've got to believe me," I begged, taking his hands in mine. "Sam. _Cannot._ Know."

"Why are you so adamant about this?" he wondered. "Is it for Bella's safety…or your own reputation? You don't want him to find out you're defending her. A sick Freya is much harder to hate than a traitor."

"How dare you!" I exclaimed, shoving him away from me. "Bella's my friend! She matters so much more to me than my reputation!"

"Well…I'm sorry, Frey, but I honestly don't see why you've taken her side," he huffed, frustrated. "We both know this is stupid. We both know that you should have just let them take the thing out of her when they had the chance. You made a mistake, Frey- why can't you just admit that?"

"What I am doing," I seethed at him, my hands clenched into fists, "is _not_ a mistake. I am supporting my best friend in the most important decision of her life. I may not like what she's deciding, and maybe I do think she's throwing her life away…but it isn't my life. It's _hers._ It's _her_ decision, and she needed my help. So I'm giving it to her. Don't you dare tell me, Jacob Black, that I'm helping my friend because I'm afraid of what a pack of stupid, moronic _dogs_ think about me!" By now, I was full out screaming at him, tears threatening to fall. I wanted to punch him- I really did. And if we hadn't been dating…I would have.

"This is what I'm going to do," he said, his voice calm. "I am going to go back to Sam. I am going to tell him the truth. And I am going to prove that you are wrong."

"This isn't a game, Jacob!" I gasped, exasperated now. "It's not about right and wrong anymore. It's life and death- Bella's life and death! Don't you care about her at all anymore?"

"Don't try and make me feel guilty, Freya," he growled at me. "I'm not the one letting Bella kill herself. I love Bella- she's one of my best friends. So don't you tell me I don't care about her."

For a moment, everything was still. Deathly still, and deathly silent, his words hung in the air while I processed them. When I finally realized what he'd said…it was like the roof of the garage had buried me alive. I couldn't breathe.

"Oh, my God," I gasped, my hands flying to my mouth, hardly able to believe what I'd just heard come out of my boyfriend's mouth. "You…you _love_…"

Jake looked like he was in shock. He hadn't meant to say what he'd said…but he'd said it. And judging by the way his light had darkened when he'd said those words, he'd meant it, too. He was still in love with Bella. Maybe he should have mentioned that when he asked me to move in with him.

"Freya…no," he said in a rush, shaking his head violently and grabbing me by the shoulders. "No, Frey, that's not what I meant."

"It is," I gasped. "It's…it's exactly what you meant. You love her. You're _in_ love _with_ her. I…" I sank down to the ground, leaning against the garage wall. "I feel like such an _idiot._ Of _course_ you're still in love with her. I should have seen it before this."

"Freya…"

He just stood there, his hands at his side and his eyes dead. He'd meant it, and it terrified him. I could tell. Jake didn't know what to say…there was nothing to say. He'd said it all already.

"Just…go," I ordered him, shaking my head. "Go back to Sam. Tell him what you want. If it comes to a fight…just make sure they know I'm going to be standing between them and Bella- just like last time."

I stood up, brushing the dirt off my jeans and wiping my tears on my sleeve. I turned around to leave, but Jake caught my arm. I turned around, and it was impossible to miss the intense sorrow in his eyes. "I'm so, so sorry," he murmured, his hand caressing my cheek gently.

"I know you are, Jake," I sighed, suddenly feeling centuries older than my seventeen years. "I am, too. I shouldn't have thought you'd get over her as fast as you did. I…" I shook my head. I didn't have anything else to say either, I guess. "Go, Jake. Tell Sam I'm waiting for him."

Alice opened the door as I watched Jake running off into the forest. She came to my side, and rested her hand in my shoulder. Without turning my gaze away from Jacob's retreating form, I said to her, "Get everyone back in the house. We're going to have visitors soon."

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**PLEASE! PLEASE DON'T HATE ME! I know...I know. I was super mad when I wrote this, too...but it had to happen. You'll see why...just be patient:)**

**I know this was kind of a crappy ending for Freya...but things WILL get better. I PROMISE:) **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	7. It's About Time Jacob Took Control

**Disclaimer: Ok...so I'm going to get super nerdy with the disclaimer and put it into a biconditional statement. Twilight belongs to me iff I am Stephanie Meyer. So...yeah. It's not mine:)**

**Alrighty:) Thank you SOOO much to everybody who reviewed chapter 6! And thanks for not killing me...it was a kind of suckish ending to that chapter, but believe me, it'll get better soon enough. I'm also sorry about the long wait for this chapter...I would have had it up a lot sooner, but silly me, I forgot to attach the document to the email I sent my beta! Hence, the 2 extra days you all had to wait for chapter 7:( I'm sorry, guys! But you really should give a round of applause to my beta, Rebecca Masen, because she truly is wonderful:)

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**Chapter Seven**

After Jacob left, I was devastated. My first love, loved someone else. Of course- that would be just my luck, wouldn't it? Nothing could simply go _right_ for me, could it? There always had to be a catch. I'd known Jake and I wouldn't be together forever…but I was planning on our splitting up being due to his imprinting, something that was natural for a werewolf and that neither of us could control.

Instead, he leaves me for something as incredibly, unbelievably _normal_ as simply not caring about me as much as he cared about someone else.

"Well, this sucks," I sighed as I reentered the house, returning to my self-assigned spot in front of Bella's couch, preparing myself for a nice, long, uninterrupted session of wallowing in my self-pity.

"Freya…I'm sorry," Bella whispered, laying her hand on my head sympathetically. "I…I feel awful. Like this is all my fault. Jake…I didn't know he still felt that way about me. If I had…I would never have acted so excited to see him. I…I…" I could hear tears in her voice. Of course- I'd forgotten. This was an extremely hormonal pregnant woman I was talking to.

"Bells, don't sweat it," I chuckled in an attempt to cheer her up. It wasn't her fault she was so darn likeable...although, I'll admit, there were moments I wished she had a flaw other than her lack of self-preservation. Like…maybe a huge mole on her chin, or something. "It was going to come to this eventually anyway," I continued when I saw that her expression was still absolutely dripping in unnecessary guilt. "I was just hoping it wouldn't be quite so soon. It's not your fault, so quit crying about it."

I wiped the tears away from her eyes and gave her a smile, hoping she'd believe me when I said I wasn't upset, that I knew this was going to happen. In reality…I'd been taken completely and totally by surprise. I felt like shit, and I couldn't believe I'd been so stupid to think that a guy could actually love me the way I'd thought Jake had. I'd seen his light- I'd seen it grow darker when he entered the house earlier that day. I'd had all clues just sitting in front of me…I just didn't know what to make of them.

The Cullen's were a nice family- I liked them pretty well, better than I'd expected to, actually. But they were really getting on my nerves, trying to talk to me like nothing had happened. With a sigh, I shook my head and stood up. "I'm going to phase," I announced. "That way, if someone decides to make a play for Bella, I'll be able to give you a warning."

Nobody argued with me, so I headed for the door.

Something about being in my wolf form was incredibly freeing. Maybe it was the rhythm of my body as I dashed through the trees, or the feeling of the wind in my fur. Or maybe it was knowing that nobody would recognize me as Freya Lust, the chick with parental issues, when I was a wolf. To anybody watching me, I was just a cute little dog.

Woof.

Once I'd phased, I made sure to keep my mind quiet. If Sam or one of the others from the pack heard me…they'd know the story about me and Bella getting sick was just that- a story. No matter what Jake believed about Sam's morals, I knew that his discovery of Bella's condition would end up leading to disaster. I'd promised to protect Bella and her kid…so I was going to do that to the best of my ability by keeping her safe from Sam.

With this mindset, I made my way back into the Cullen's house, being careful not to track mud or dirt or anything onto Esme's clean floor. She was a bloodsucker, yeah…but she was a very clean, neat, and tidy one. If she were human, she would probably be a maid or something, because I swear, every single room in that house was completely spotless.

"Don't worry about making a mess, dear," Esme called to me from the kitchen. "Just come on in and take a seat by Bella."

Whoa. I thought Edward was the mind reader here?

With a shrug, I pranced across the carpet to the pristine, white couch, and collapsed in front of Bella. She reached down, tangling her fingers in my golden fur. Normally, I would bite the hand off anybody who tried to pet me…but I was too focused on keeping my thoughts concealed. Besides…this was Bella- my frail, and extremely pregnant best friend.

I don't know how I didn't notice the voices before. But now…now that I was in my little bubble, they were so incredibly _there_. They were shouting…so loudly, at first, that I found their words to be slightly incoherent. It was…chaotic.

I searched through the thoughts of my brothers (and sister- Leah's shouts were colorful as always). It was hard to keep from shouting profanities myself, once I learned what Jake had done.

He had been so careless! So careless! Not only had he revealed that Bella and I weren't actually being quarantined, but he had run through our entire conversation in his head on his way back to the reservation! The entire pack now knew what Bella was carrying, and their reaction was by no means a good one.

_How could this have happened? What does it mean? What will it be?_

_This…just isn't right! It's downright dangerous! _

_Unnatural. Monstrous. An abomination. _

_We can't allow it. _

The thoughts swirled around me, finally starting to create some kind of coherency. Everyone was thinking the same thing. Bella's child was a monster, in their eyes. In my eyes, too, I suppose, but maybe that was only because I knew that thinking something different would definitely make my presence known.

Only two wolves were not thinking along these lines.

Jake- gag me- would never even consider hurting Bella. He was still in love with her, after all.

And…

Seth.

The thoughts circling among the pack were all centered around what Jacob had seen. The bruises up and down Bella's body, the way she shook when she stood up. Edward's tortured expression, the tears running down my face as I told him who I was siding with.

_They know it's dangerous. But they won't do anything about it- even Freya is protecting Bella Swan. _

_The safety of our families, of everyone here, is more important that one human. If they won't kill it…we have to. Before it's too late. The thing is growing quickly; there's no time to waste. _

_It will mean a fight. A bad one. _Thanks, Embry- thank you so much for pointing that out.

_We're ready. _Paul was always ready for a fight, no matter who his opponent was.

_We'll need surprise on our side, _Sam mused. _If Freya…_

_She won't,_ Jacob assured him, although he must have known I was listening. _She's in human form- won't leave it. Bella won't let her. Freya does everything Bella asks anymore. _

I was taken aback. I hadn't expected Jake to defend me like this…but maybe he did still love me a little, after all? I didn't know…but it was best not to get my hopes up. I pushed the thought out of my mind, and focused on the conversation.

_If we catch them divided, we can take them down separately. It will increase our chances of victory, _Jared suggested.

I heard Edward whispering to Esme to gather the others into the house in the background, so I could tell that he was hearing everything I was. It was a comforting thought- it meant that I didn't have to pay as much attention. I let my mind slip to the back of the group, so silent that _I_ hardly even knew I was there. For the moment, I was nothing more than a shadow.

_Wait,_ Jake thought, finally reaching the conclusion I'd arrived at the moment I heard Bella was pregnant. _What are you thinking? You wouldn't attack them for breaking the treaty this afternoon. Now you're planning an ambush, when the treaty is still intact? _

"_This isn't something our treaty anticipated, Jake,_ Sam countered. _This is a danger to every human in the area. We don't know what kind of creature the Cullen's have bread, but we know that it is strong and fast-growing. And it will be too young to follow any treaty. Remember the newborn vampires we fought? Wild, violent, beyond the reach of reason or restraint. Imagine one like that, but protected by the Cullen's. _

I had to admit- he had a point. This child…it could be very dangerous. Nobody knew how this was going to play out- not even Alice, who didn't seem to be able to see the baby at all. In fact, she was starting to get quite the migraine.

_We can't take chances with the unknown in this case, Jacob. We can only allow the Cullen's to exist while we're absolutely sure that they can be trusted not to cause harm. This…thing. It can't be trusted. _

_They don't like it any more than we do, Sam. _

Suddenly, my face was swimming in the minds of the pack. I was sitting on the floor before Bella, my arms crossed tightly over my chest as I kept watch over my friend.

_Some are ready to fight for it, no matter what it is. _

_I can't believe this!_ Jake roared. _How're you going to kill this thing without killing Bella? _

Ahh…there it was. The revelation I'd been waiting for. I tried not to make my whispered "I told you so" too loud…but I knew he heard it. He'd heard everything I'd been thinking this whole time. Like he'd mentioned, not too long ago…he was more attuned to me than anyone else. They might not know I was hanging around, but Jacob did.

_She's human, too!_ Jake argued. _Doesn't our protection apply to her?_

_She's dying anyway, _Leah thought. _We'll just shorten the process. _

I think that's what made him finally snap. I saw, through the others' eyes, him leap toward Leah, his teeth flashing. He barely missed her back leg when Sam dug his own teeth into Jake's flank and dragged him back.

_Stop!_

The command from Sam was heavy, laden with the authority that only the Alpha possessed. Sure enough, Jacob froze in place, nearly falling over but somehow managing to stay on his feet.

_You will not be cruel to him, Leah, _Sam commanded. He was really starting to get order-happy, if you asked me. I was so glad I didn't have to actually be around him right now. _Bella's sacrifice is a heavy price, and we will _all _recognize that. It is against everything we stand for to take a human life. Making an exception to that code is a bleak thing. We will all mourn for what we do tonight. _

I was so angry…so, so very angry. I couldn't believe it. Sam, throwing orders left and right, plotting to murder the last best friend I had left. I couldn't take this anymore…not without letting everyone know I was spying, I raced out the door and phased.

I pulled on the oversized sweat pants and sweat shirt I'd been wearing earlier. They were warm, comfortable…and they almost let me forget that what I'd been hearing had come from my pack- my brothers. The ones I trusted with nearly every single secret I possessed.

Almost- but not quite.

"Sam," I choked, collapsing down onto my knees, my head buried in my hands. "Oh, God, Sam…what have you done?"

"Freya?"

I was expecting Edward to come find me, to tell me that I needed to phase back and hear the rest of the conversation. He was the one who would take the most interest, after all. Nobody else could hear the first part of Sam's plans. I needed to phase back…but I just couldn't make myself. Hearing the people I love, think the way they were thinking…it just hurt, way too much for me to deal with right now.

However, it was Esme's voice that called to me, and Esme's arms that wrapped around my shoulder. It was Esme who wiped the tears off my cheeks.

"I don't know what you heard," she began. "It must not have been good, because Edward is about to go into shock right now. But…we need to know what's going on. We need to know their plans, so that we can protect Bella. Now, take your time, sweetheart. Wait until you've got things back under control. But when you're ready…"

I nodded. She didn't need to say anything else. I knew what I had to do.

"No, I know," I sniffed, wiping at my face with my sleeve. "Go ahead and go inside- be with Edward. He'll be able to hear me from in there."

Esme nodded, somehow guessing that I wanted to be alone when I heard the rest of the conversation. Once she was gone, I reluctantly phased, becoming a wolf once more.

_Pull it together, Jacob, _Sam was barking. _The tribe comes first. _

_I was wrong today, Sam. _Well, duh.

_Your reasons were wrong then. But now, we have a duty to fulfill. _

_No. _

I felt the collective gasp among the rest of the pack. It went through all of us- even me- like a crowd doing the wave at a baseball game. _Nobody_ said no to Sam. He was the Alpha. You did as you were told, or he would _make_ you do what he wanted.

Sure enough, Jake's refusal was followed by an order from Sam.

_Yes,_ Sam growled. The authority in his tone…it had actual heat to it. The heat of his anger making the order twice as strong as any I had ever heard him give. _There will be no loopholes tonight. You, Jacob Black, are going to fight the Cullen's with us. You, with Quil and Embry, will take care of Jasper and Emmett. You are obligated to protect the tribe. That is why you exist. You _will _perform this obligation. _

And that was that. Nobody refused the Alpha- not twice. Jake sank to the ground, the weight of Sam's command literally crushing him against the twigs and leaves of the forest. So…that was how this was going to go, then. The pack would be attacking…and Jake would join them, under the weight of Sam's edict.

With a sigh, I sank to the ground, myself, feeling a sense of defeat. Jake had been so close…I'd felt a couple of minds faltering. Seth, Quil, Embry…they weren't sure this was the right thing to do anymore. But now, watching the leader of this little rebellion fall, they figured there was nothing they could do.

I listened for a while longer, focusing on Jacob. Would he make another attempt to defy Sam? Or was he going to just go along with everything? I didn't know. Jake had always found ways of surprising me in the past, and I was willing to bet that this situation was no different.

His mind was numb. I didn't know if that was because he was hiding his thoughts, or because he simply wasn't thinking anything. Quil and Embry tried to talk strategy with him, but he was totally nonresponsive. I was starting to get a little worried about him, when I felt something.

It was coming from Jake. It was like…like something had been sparked inside of him. I didn't know if it was an idea, or a thought, or a plan…or what. He was hiding it, from Sam and the others and even from me. I didn't know what was going on inside his head, but suddenly, he was standing again.

_Jacob! What have you done?_ Sam gasped, feeling the same shift of power as I had.

_I won't follow you, Sam. Not for something so wrong. _

Sam was stunned- I was proud. I felt the pride brimming up in my eyes, and spilling over into my fur. This here- this was the reason it hurt so bad to lose Jacob. This was the man I'd fallen so desperately in love with.

_They aren't our enemies, Sam,_ Jake continued. _They never have been. I didn't really realize it until I seriously thought about destroying them. _

_This isn't about them, is it?_ Sam snarled, flinging his words at Jacob, right where he knew it would hurt him the most. _This is about Bella. She has never been the one for you, she has never chosen you, but you continue to destroy your life for her! Even Freya wasn't enough to keep you away from Bella. As fragile as we all knew Freya's heart has always been, you went ahead and you broke it for your silly delusions! _

Jake and I both inhaled sharply. The words stung both of us…yet we both knew they were true. Jake was a fool over Bella…but I'd always been a fool over Jake.

_Maybe you're right,_ Jake admitted. _I never meant to hurt Freya, but what's done is done. I will not help you destroy the pack over Bella. Ephraim Black's son was not born to follow Levi Uley's. _

_Is this is, then, Jacob _Black_?_ Sam's tone was mocking, and made me really want to slap somebody._ Even if you can defeat me, the pack will never follow you! _

_I'm not going to fight you, Sam,_ Jake responded in surprise. _I'm not going to ask anybody to follow me. But I _will _stand between you and the Cullen's. I won't just watch while the pack kills innocent people. Clip had the right idea, Sam. As usual. We're all better than this, Sam. _

_It all comes back to Freya, doesn't it? _Sam growled.

_I guess so, _Jake shrugged.

_This is ridiculous. You know better than anyone the way Freya tends to flutter around on her whims. She never thinks things through, Jacob. You shouldn't follow her lead. She's making a mistake. _

_Like hell I am, _I growled. _Are you leaving or not, Jake? Cause I've got better things to do than sit around and listen to Sam's bullshit. _

_Couldn't have said it better myself, _Jake agreed.

I could feel when Jacob broke away from the rest of the pack. One second he was there, the next…gone.

_Freya? How long have you been listening? _Quil asked.

_You don't call me Calypso for nothing, _I growled. _They know, Sam. Edward's right here- he's been listening to every word you've said. You'd better be real careful here on out, Sam. I'd hate for someone to get hurt. _

I'm not sure how I left Sam's pack and joined Jacob's. Maybe it was like when you bought your sister a real crappy present for her birthday. It's the thought that counts. Who knew? All I knew was that suddenly, Jake and I were very much alone.

_Thanks, Jake,_ I murmured. _For not turning me in... I appreciate it. _

_Yeah…well…you've had a rough day. Thought I'd cut you some slack. _

_Thanks. _

_Get back to the house,_ he ordered. _The bloodsuckers need to know what's going on. I'll meet you at the house, ok? _

_Yeah…sure. Meet you there. _

I phased, pulled on my clothes, and dashed into the house to tell everyone what I'd heard. If Esme was right, then Edward was in freak out mode…and probably hadn't bothered to tell them anything.

When I entered the house, all eyes were on me. Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie looking mildly disinterested, Carlisle looked concerned, while Esme was almost…proud? Alice just looked like she was in pain, and Bella was looking pretty hopeful. I pretty much ignored everyone…everyone except for Edward. The haunted look on his face was pretty hard to ignore.

I stepped into the center of the room, where everybody would be sure to see me. "So," I began, clapping my hands together, ready to get my mind off of Jacob and back on the task at hand. I mean, I was really ready for business. If this moment of my life had background music, the Cullen's and I would all be singing and dancing to "I'll Make A Man Out of You" with Donny Osmond. So, with my face deadly serious and completely devoid of emotion, I faced the vampires. "Here's what's going down."

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**I hope you all got the Mulan reference right there at the end:) Best Disney movie EVER! Although The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast were pretty awesome too:) What's YOUR favorite Disney movie? If you let me know in a review, I'll put your name in the AN of my next chapter! :D **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	8. What Does it Want? Blood or Chocolate?

**Disclaimer: I own all of my own characters- in other words, the ones you don't recognize. Including Karson. :) Just about everything else is Stephanie Meyer's. **

**Sorry this one took a while! But thanks so much to my beta, Rebecca Masen, for fixing all my grammar mistakes:) Seriously. Without her, I would probably sound like some sort of over-imaginative second grader...:) And thank all of YOU for reading and reviewing my story:) **

**Alright...so...I wanted to know what people's favorite Disney movies were. Why? No clue. I just like Disney, I guess:) Anyway...thanks to everybody who answered! :D**

**mellyjellybelly: I always thought the Disney robin hood was foxy, too:) **

**DressageQueen14: Aww, I just love Aladdin:) He has a very pretty face, and his genie friend is kind of epicly awesome:)**

**Duskfire2: Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorites! Have you ever seen the musical? I got to see it live over the summer- I was super excited:) The music is soo good!:):)**

**JandMbooklovers: LUCKY! I wish I was watching Mulan right now:( Instead, I'm avoiding my geometry homework:( lol:)**

**I had lots of other people review, too- so thanks! I always love hearing what you guys have to say:) **

**I'm going to go now, and let you read the chapter:) ENJOY! :D**

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**Chapter Eight**

I was tired, I was hungry, I was totally and completely emotionally drained, and the only we any of us could figure out how to get Bella to sleep was if I crawled up next to her on the floor in my wolf form and acted like a dog. So naturally, her fingers were tangled up in my fur, and I was terrified to move because her whole body was so frail, I was afraid that if I tried to pull away, her whole hand would snap off.

Skipping school is so overrated.

To make matters worse, I could hear Seth and Leah- the newest members of the new pack Jake had created- bickering back and forth, while Jake sat on the arm of the couch above me and stroked Bella's hair.

_GUYS!_ I finally screamed, not able to take it any longer. _SHUT UP ALREADY! I'm freaking serious. You've done nothing but yell at each other since you got here. I'd think you'd be happier now that you don't have Sam in your head all the time, Leah,_ I groaned. I was definitely starting to get a headache.

_Frey…if you want a turn, I'll deal with Jake,_ Leah murmured softly. _I know what its like- to have him in your head, thinking about someone else all the time…and it sucks. Its bad enough you have to deal with him in your head, you shouldn't have to be around him so much when he's human. _

_I can't leave Bella,_ I sighed. _I promised I'd stay with her, for everything. Besides…we just got her to sleep. And she thinks I'm her pet Newfoundland or something. I'm fine here. I'm just…a little antsy, is all...you know restless and everything. I'm sorry I yelled at you guys. _

_It's cool, _Seth laughed. That's why I liked the kid so much- he was always so darn upbeat.

_Nah, Sunshine, it's not,_ I sighed, officially giving him a new nickname. _I shouldn't take my personal problems out on you. I'm being a bit of a bi- I mean…a witch_ I amended quickly, remembering that Seth was just a sophomore.

_I'm not a little kid, you know,_ Seth chuckled. _I mean, we _do _have cable, Clip. _

_Can it, Sunshine. _I'm kind of glad I didn't have a sister like Leah…although… she does make a pretty good friend when she isn't all angry over Sam, her ex-boyfriend who had left her for his imprint, Emily.

_Don't remind me,_ Leah growled.

_Whoa, _Seth gasped. _What is _that_?_

_What?_ I demanded, my ears pricking up. Had Sam decided to attack after all?

_Do you smell that, Leah? It's…weird. Like…wolf, but…not. Frey, get Jake- he's gotta come check this out. _

_No, _I ordered. _No…Seth, Leah, get back to the house. I'm going to check it out, and you two are going to stay with Jake. I'll howl if I've got trouble. _

_Clip, come on, _Leah sighed. _We have no idea what's out there. You shouldn't go alone. _

_But you two can't turn invisible. I can. Sneaking around has always been _my_ dirty work. I mean, you all don't call me Calypso for nothing, do you? Just get inside already. I'll be real careful out there. _

I was already starting to get up, looking up to Edward pleadingly for assistance. He nodded, and reached over and grabbed Bella's hand. Her fingers quickly let go of my fur, grasping instead onto Edward. I nodded my thanks, grabbing a mouthful of my clothes before I left, assuming that Eddie would be kind enough to explain to my ex what was going on.

The trees were looking especially green, that fine morning…evening…afternoon? I'd lost my sense of time, somehow, and this deep into the forest, it was almost impossible to tell. The nature around me was beautiful, however, and I was reminded why so many people stuck in Forks. The scenery was fantastic. Not to mention the high levels of security here. Between the two werewolf packs and overly protective coven of vampires, Forks had more safety precautions in place than a friggin' airport.

I was trying to be stealthy, silent, and everything…but I must have been pretty out of practice, because I stepped on a rusty nail someone had been so inconsiderately left in the woods. Of course, it managed to slip between the protective padding of my paws and stab me at just the wrong angle. Whining slightly, I pulled the nail out with my teeth and kept on walking, trying not to limp but eerily aware of the fact that small puddles of blood were showing up every time I took a step.

Paying very close attention to the sights and smells around me, I used the image Seth had given me to get close to where the strange smell was coming from. I thought I could smell it…Seth had stayed in his wolf form, and was very quietly feeding me the memory of the scent.

I didn't really know quite what it was. I'd…I'd never smelt anything like it before. It was a one of a kind thing, although not exactly unpleasant. It was like…like a dog, like me, mixed with honey and rain…

So weird.

Anyway, I followed the scent a few more yards into the woods, until I came to a clearing.

What I saw in the clearing had me lost for breath.

Hardly able to believe what I was seeing, I phased quickly, pulling on my clothes before making my way over to where the boy was hunched over, shaking violently and puking his guts out.

"Karson?" I asked, coming close and resting my hand on his back. "Karson, what are you doing out here? And how did you get so sick?"

"Get…away," he panted, his teeth bared and his hands digging into the ground.

"I've got to get you home," I sighed. "Or to a hospital, at least."

"I'm serious, Freya," he hissed, sounding like he was in pain. His eyes were squeezed shut, his jaw clenched, but I could tell he meant business. "Get away from me." It wasn't until I heard the urgency in his tone that I looked at him- I mean, took a good, hard look at him.

Karson was down on all fours, and it looked like his entire body was having a series of muscle spasms. Hair was growing and receding all over his body, his bones twisting and changing in ways that just should not have been possible. His hands grew long, sharp nails.

"Oh, my God," I gasped.

Karson moaned as his spine bent and cracked unnaturally, looking like he was in terrible, terrible pain. "Go!" he gasped, reaching out and pushing me away. I was surprised by how strong he was- he managed to get me a whole three feet away with one shove, and I hadn't even been taken by surprise.

"I'm not going to leave you, Karson," I sighed. I sat down next to him, rested my hand on his. "Not when you're like this." I may not have known him very well- in fact, I'd only really spoken with him a couple of times…he was a quiet fellow, after all. But I recognized another human being (Well…sort of human) in pain. It was kind of breaking my heart.

He didn't argue with me anymore; he just let me sit there next to him while he changed. (While he Changed? I didn't know if that was the technical term for the process he was going through or not. All I knew was that his way of turning into a wolf looked like it hurt like hell.)

Eventually, the shaking slowed, and I watched on in silent awe as Karson slowly retreated back into his self. The hair disappeared, his spine twisted back into place, and his claws receded back into his hands. He was panting, and covered in a thin sheet of sweat.

"Freya," he panted, grabbing onto my wrist tightly, digging his nails in deep. "You can't…say anything. About what…you saw."

"We all have our little secrets, Karson," I chuckled, smiling smugly at him. "Rest for a while. It isn't safe for you here…your smell is way too conspicuous, especially while you're Changing like this. The others will smell you from a mile away."

"I'm…almost ready," he nodded.

We sat there for a while as Karson caught his breath. I waited patiently, not wanting to rush the young werewolf. I could tell he was about to fall asleep, so I decided it was time to take him back to the Cullen's.

"We've got to get out of here," I murmured. "We're on Sam's land. It's a miracle he hasn't tried to corner me yet. Come on- I'll help you walk."

He insisted that he didn't need help- but then he almost tripped over his feet. At last, Karson allowed me to hold onto one of his arms, keeping him upright and helping him make his way through the forest toward the Cullen's house.

"You're bleeding," Karson frowned, his nose stuck up in the air, looking more wolf-like than I or my golden retriever wolf ever had.

I frowned, confused. But then he grabbed the hand that was holding onto his arm. There was a big round circle of red stained on what was left of his white long-sleeved shirt. I groaned, embarrassed. I'd figured that had healed up by now- but I guess I really did heal significantly slower than the other, larger wolves.

"I am so sorry, Karson," I apologized. "I…I didn't mean to ruin your shirt like that."

"Don't apologize," he ordered. "And my shirt was already ruined." As if to prove his point, he tore off a strip of the white fabric and wrapped it around he palm of my hand, being surprisingly gentle for such a big guy. I watched him as he worked, trying my hardest to figure him out.

I wasn't getting anywhere.

"You're going to want to get that checked out," Karson informed me once he'd finished. "Is there a doctor nearby?"

"Pretty nearby," I chuckled. "Thank you, Karson."

He just shrugged, and we kept on walking in silence for a while.

"How many of you are there?" he asked me when we were getting closer to the house. He must have smelled Seth and Leah…which meant that they'd left the house to look for me when I'd changed back.

"In my pack?" I asked. "Or altogether?"

"How many werewolves are in La Push?" he rephrased. "I've never seen so many in one place before. You smell different, too…sweeter. Like a flower, or…" his eyes got very wide for a moment, but then he seemed to calm down, and nodded. "The mark on your neck…. I should have known before this, I suppose."

"I was bit by a vampire a couple months ago, yeah," I shrugged. "Hurt like hell. Don't try it."

"Don't plan to."

We were silent for a little while longer.

"There are four in my pack," I explained. "But there are about thirteen or fourteen of us altogether. We split up last night," I sighed. "It wasn't fun. I'll explain things to you later, ok?"

He just nodded. Wow…he really wasn't much of a talker.

"Hey…this is super embarrassing, but would you mind if I…you know…"

"I could tell you were a werewolf the moment I met you, Freya," he chuckled. "Your father and that Jacob kid, too. Riff had the werewolf smell all over him when I met him."

"I figured as much," I smiled. "Ok…well…you're going to have to turn around. These are kind of my favorite sweats, and I really don't want to ruin them."

He looked confused, and just sort of stood there for a while. I made a little spinning motion with my finger, and finally he did as I asked. As soon as his back was turned, I changed, folding my clothes up neatly and putting them in a pile on the ground.

Pretty soon, I was getting that lovely tingling feeling down my spine I always got before I phased. It always started with the spine, it seemed. Then, fast as lightning, my whole body exploded. I didn't feel a thing- it didn't hurt, and it wasn't unnatural. It's just like…one second I was a person, the next, a wolf. It wasn't a big deal for me, the way it was for Karson.

_Oh, thank God! I was so worried about you, Frey!_ Leah exclaimed.

_Guys, calm down!_ I laughed. _Look…I've brought a friend home. He's a werewolf, too…but different. I don't know what he is, really, but he knows about us, and he's a good guy, so you don't need to freak out. We're coming up to the house soon. _

I didn't explain anymore; I was more focused on getting Karson to stop staring at me and actually follow me up to the house.

"You're…a dog," he pointed out.

I growled. Not this again!

"Alright, alright…I'm sorry," he chuckled. "I'm coming, ok?"

I nodded, and picked up my clothes. Pretty soon, I was racing through the trees, wondering whether Karson would be able to keep up or not. I didn't stop until I was right outside the Cullen's house. Sure enough, Karson skidded to a stop right next to me. Hmm…so he was fast. But I bet he couldn't turn invisible.

I made my way up to the front door. Almost immediately, Carlisle greeted me, smiling and introducing himself to my new friend.

"They're vampires, Freya," Karson informed me. "You sure this is a good place to be?"

I rolled my eyes, and went ahead and made my way into the house, taking my usual spot by Bella.

_You explain, Edward, _I begged. _Or at least make Jake do it. I haven't slept a wink in over thirty six hours…_

"Yeah, of course," Edward nodded.

I listened for a while as Jacob and Edward explained the danger of Bella's pregnancy, the treaty between the werewolves and vampires, the Cullen tradition of "vegetarianism"…everything. Eventually, I decided that it would be safe for me to go ahead and take a quick nap. I closed my eyes, and slept.

When I woke up, Jacob was gone. Much to my surprise, so was the couch.

Bella was still there- of course. But she'd been moved onto a bed, with rails. I recognized it as one of the beds from the hospital, where Carlisle worked. There were monitors flashing silently all around her, tubes and wires hooking together my fragile human friend and the machines.

That hadn't been there when I'd fallen asleep.

I stood up in a rush, resting my front paws on the bars of the bed to get a better look at Bella. She was pale…weak…sickly. She'd gotten even worse. It seemed like all she did anymore was deteriorate.

"…you think there's any chance she'll make it? I mean, as a vampire and all that. She told me about…about Esme."

Jake's voice drifted through the front door and over to my own ears, and I was momentarily confused. Nobody had told me about how Esme had become a vampire. I soon decided that it didn't matter to me right at that moment. What mattered was the topic of conversation Jake and Carlisle were having, for I was suddenly extremely curious.

"I'd say there's an even chance at this point," Carlisle answered, his voice quiet as usual. "I've seen vampire venom work miracles, but there are conditions even venom cannot overcome. Her heart is working too hard now; if it should fail…there won't be anything for me to do."

I had suspected as much. Bella had told me her plan, as well- to end up a vampire when all this was said and done. I'd also begun to suspect that her heart might be too weak to survive a bite.

"What is that thing doing to her?" Jake whispered. "She was so much worse last night…I saw the tubes, and all that. Through the window."

"The fetus isn't compatible with her body. It's too strong, for one thing, but she could probably endure that for a while. The bigger problem is that it won't allow her to get the sustenance she needs. Her body is rejecting every form of nutrition. I'm trying to feed her intravenously, but she's just not absorbing it. Everything about her condition is accelerated. I'm watching her- and not just her, but the fetus as well- starve to death by the hour. I can't stop it and I can't slow it down. I can't figure out what it _wants_."

What did the fetus want? Was it more vampire, or more human? Did it want blood or chocolate?

Suddenly, I had a revelation- a revelation that I needed to share with Carlisle, as soon as possible. I took a running start for the door, glad that it was already open enough for me to squeeze through. I then proceeded to leap right over Jake and Carlisle's heads, and run straight for the forest. Once I reached my tree- the tree I'd hidden a spare change of clothes behind- I phased, changed, and jogged back to the house.

"Carlisle!" I gasped, digging my feet into the dirt to stop myself, only a few inches from the stairs were Carlisle and Jake were sitting. "I know…I know why the fetus is rejecting everything! It wants blood, but you're feeding it chocolate!"

"Freya…what are you talking about?" Jake asked, looking confused.

"You're assuming that the baby is more human than vampire. But what if…what if what the baby needs is blood?" I waited for a moment, to let the idea sink in.

"What you're suggesting…is that the fetus is closer to a vampire than to a human?"

"Yes," I nodded. "So…go down to the blood bank or whatever, and we'll warm her up a glass."

"We can't just shove a pint of blood down her throat and see how it goes," Jake growled. "What if that's _not _what the fetus wants? She could be dead by morning."

"And she could be dead by sundown if we don't try anything," I countered hotly. "Jake…this is kind of our last option here," I tried to explain without losing my temper. "Carlisle…he is a brilliant doctor. I've seen him work miracles. But…Jake…we're losing her. I don't want to lose her any more than you do."

"I still don't like trying something so experimental," Jake shook his head, averting his eyes from my intense gaze. "Something could go wrong."

"She's not going to get much worse than she is now," I pointed out. "We might as well try it. If she dies…well, at least we tried something. We could probably still save the baby, and that's what was really important to her in the first place."

"Don't you even care about Bella?" Jake exclaimed. "Is the little monster growing inside of her more important to you than your best friend? Or am I missing something here?"

"Jake! Has the sound of your huge ego bouncing around in that huge, empty head of yours blocked out every word I've said? Of _course_ I care about Bella! I may not be willing to leave my boyfriend for her, but yeah. I care about Bella, and I love her to pieces. I want to try this so that we might be able to save her. If you still have a problem with it, I'll try it out myself first, just to make sure it won't kill her."

So much for not losing my temper, huh?

"Frey…you don't have to do that," Jake sighed.

"Oh, no, I would hate to try something too experimental on Bella. It would be better to try it out on me, first. It's not as big a deal if I keel over, am I right? I mean, I'm not in love with someone else's wife, or pregnant with their mutant child, or anything. So clearly, I'm not as much of a catch."

And now I was just running my mouth…and my tears. I couldn't help but go back to that night…back when Jake and I had broken up…when he'd chosen Bella over me.

"Freya, stop," he begged. "Please."

I had so many more things I wanted to say…so many different ways to show him how bad I'd been hurt this time. But I bit my tongue until it bled, taking deep breaths to calm down. "I'm sorry," I whispered at last.

"Don't be," he murmured, resting the palm of his hand on my cheek, wiping the tears away with his thumb. "You're not the one being a total asshole, here."

"True," I nodded, almost wanting to move away, to shout at him to stop touching me already…but I couldn't. I craved his touch so badly…so fiercely…even if it meant something else to him than it did to me. I couldn't move away, but I couldn't bear to stay. At last, he dropped his hand to his side.

"We'll run the idea by Edward," he said softly. "He can decide what to do about Bella."

Carlisle had already gone back into the house- probably sometime during mine and Jake's little fight. So when Jake entered the house, closing the door behind him, I was completely and blissfully _alone._

I thought a bit about mine and Jacob's fight. I hated fighting with anybody- especially Jake. But now that we'd broken up…we seemed to fight every time we came into contact with each other. Running into Jake at school was now a dreadful thing, instead of exciting or wonderful. It resulted in awkwardness, instead of stolen kisses in the supply closet. And it totally sucked.

Pretty soon, I was having a major bawl-fest, right there on the Cullen's front porch. Thank the Lord, none of the vampires came to bother me. Normally, they would have…but I guess Edward might have told them not to? I thought I heard a murmured "No," from inside the house earlier. If so…thank the Lord for Edward, too.

I was just wiping my eyes at the end of my pity-party when I saw a huge shadow begin to loom over me. It wasn't any of the vampires, and it was too big to be Jake or another werewolf other than Sam.

So I was guessing Karson had decided to pay me a visit.

"Go ahead and sit down, Karson," I sniffed, getting one last tear out of my eye with the corner of my sweatshirt sleeve.

He did so. He didn't say anything…he just sat there.

I found Karson's presence comforting. He was a big fellow- the cool, evening breeze of late summer was effectively blocked. It also meant that I couldn't see in through the large window to the side of the door, which meant that I didn't have to see the way Jacob was surely looking at Bella right now.

"What happened?" Karson asked, sounding almost curious.

"I…I…" I tried to speak, but I just couldn't seem to get the words out. I was choking on them- I was choking on words. Next thing I knew, I was choking on tears, too.

I'm pretty sure Karson found my crying to be extremely awkward. Here I was, crying on the front porch, my face buried in his chest like he was someone I'd known for years, when in reality, I've only known him for maybe a little longer than a week. I must have looked crazy. Yet…he let me cry. He didn't push me away, call me a freak, and run.

That's always nice.

So, yeah…I cried again. Karson was good about it, and handled my little mental breakdown pretty well. When I was done, I stood up, blushing furiously and apologizing profusely, and ran into the woods to take over patrol for one of the Clearwater siblings like nothing had ever happened.

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**Mm'kay, so that's it for this chapter:) I hope you all enjoyed it! Let me know what you think! :D **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	9. Making Negotiations

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight:( Which kind of sucks for me. But I do own Freya, and Owen...and Karson! *yay!* :) So be jealous;) **

**Alrighty...so...it's been about forever and a day since I've updated this. So I'm super sorry about that:( Not only that, but most of this chapter is quotes and scenes that come right out of Breaking Dawn. (Which I don't own, and is probably why it took me soooo long to write.) **

**I hope you enjoy chapter 9 anyway! **

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**Chapter Nine**

I'd been hiding from Karson—err, I mean, running patrol—for about an hour when I heard them. The wolves, that is. Sam's wolves, or what was left of them after the Clearwater's and I all left with Jake. They were approaching the boundary line between their land and ours, and it was making me super nervous. Bella was starting to look a lot better…but she was still very fragile. It wouldn't be difficult, if the wolves were to somehow slip past us, for them to kill her.

_Guys! We got company!_ I exclaimed with an urgent howl, heading for the part of the forest where the two territories met.

_Who is it? _Leah wondered.

_There's four of them,_ Seth mused, listening carefully. _Three wolves, one man. I can't tell who it is, though. I mean, I know I'm good, but I'm not that good. _

_Don't sweat it, kid,_ Jake muttered. _I'm not that good, either._

_Smells like Paul_, I grimaced. I'd never liked Paul's scent. It was too…angry for me. It reminded me of smoke, and rap concerts.

_But apparently Clip is,_ Lean sniggered, always happy to get a jibe in at her brother.

_Guys, please. If Paul's there, it could mean trouble, _Jake sighed. _I'm coming. Ok? Don't talk to anybody until I get there. I mean you, Clip, and I'm serious. Dead serious. As in, if you talk to anybody until I get there, you will be dead._

_Yeah, yeah,_ I muttered. _Mr. Alpha Wolf getting all protective over the midget…story of my life, you know? Fine—I'll stay clear of Paul until you get here. So hurry up._

_Good dog_, he praised me.

_Woof. _

By now, I could see the four werewolves waiting for us. They knew I was here- I could tell by the way Jared's nose was stuck up in the air, his eyes trained in my direction, but not quite able to find me from my hiding spot behind an insanely huge tree at the edge of the clearing.

_I can see them, _I told Jake, watching the group before me carefully. _Jared's in his human form. The three wolves are Paul, Quil, and Collin. They don't look angry…although I don't think Jared's too happy with the way I'm hiding from him. I'm making him nervous. _

_Well…keep it up, _Jake ordered. _We're getting to you as fast as we can. Should be there in a couple seconds. _

Sure enough, Jake began making his way across the clearing toward Jared's group only a moment or two later. I followed, taking my place at Jake's right. Soon, we were joined by Leah and Seth. Across from us, the three wolves and Jared stood rigidly—not being able to hear us must have been as weird as us not being able to hear them. To be honest, I kind of missed Quil's thoughts in my head. He'd never once complained about my singing.

_Yeah, I miss them too, Frey, _Jake agreed. _I'm going to figure out what's going on here, and when I do, I'm going to phase so that Jared and I can understand each other. You got anything you want me to say to them? _

_No, _Seth, Leah, and I all answered. We'd already said it all, when we'd split. We had made our decision, and I didn't think there was any way to rejoin Sam's pack. So there was no turning back now—the four of us were all in the same, tiny little paddleboat now, and there was no room for regret.

Quil, Paul, and Collin were staring at us, as if waiting for us to phase or something. Their expressions were blank, and I couldn't hear them…so there really was no way of knowing what our friends wanted from us.

Jared cleared his throat, and then nodded a Jake. "White flag of truce, Jake. We're here to talk."

_Think it's true?_ Set wondered cautiously.

_Probably, _I admitted. _Sam would rather us talk it out before we fight to the death. _

_But what if it's a trap? _Leah wondered. _What if Sam, Embry, and Brady are sneaking behind our territory right now…_

_They wouldn't do that,_ Jake interrupted her. _Sam may have lapses in judgment, but he's not a complete idiot. They'd get themselves killed, and break the treaty in the process. _

_True. Sam lives by the treaty, _I sighed. _If it isn't necessary, there's no way he'll break it. I think we're safe to talk to them now, Jake. _

_Give me a minute. _

"It would be easier to talk if I could hear you, too, you know," Jared frowned, obviously getting frustrated at our lack of cooperation.

Jake, of course, just stared him down. It was one of his death glares- the kind you never wanted to be on the receiving end of. They were terrifying. Even the Alpha's right hand man was affected.

"Alright…I guess I'll just talk then," Jared muttered. "Jake…we want you to come back."

Quil whined softly behind him, and my heart went out to the guy. He and Jake were best friends- they had been since even before all this werewolf crap had set in. Quil was probably missing Jake just as much as Jake had been missing Quil lately.

"You've torn our family apart. It's not meant to be this way."

Ok…yeah…I'd forgotten about that part. Jared was right—we had torn the family apart. At first, when I left, I was just…really, really angry. But now, the adrenaline had worn off, and I was starting to wonder if we'd done the right thing. We were a torn family, with no way of ever coming back together again. The wolf pack…they had been my escape. When my mother left me, when she came back, and then again, when I moved out…the pack had always been there for me.

I missed that.

_Don't think like that, Frey, _Leah ordered. _It isn't going to get us anywhere. _

_I know, _I apologized. _I'm sorry. _

"We know that you feel…strongly, about the situation with the Cullens. We know that's a problem. But this is an overreaction."

Seth let out a menacing growl. _Overreaction? And attacking our allies without warning wasn't?_

_Seth- breathe,_ I ordered.

_Poker face, man, _Jake backed me up. _They can't hear you anyway. _

"Sam's willing to take this slow, Jake. He's calmed down, talked to the other Elders. They've decided that immediate action is in no one's best interest at this point."

_In short, _Leah translated, _they've already lost the element of surprise. _

"Billy and Sue agree with you, Jake, that we can wait for Bella…to be separated from the problem. Killing her is not something any of us feel comfortable with."

Jake let out a snarl.

_Jake, calm down,_ I whispered. _I'm not going to let them hurt her. _

_Neither am I. _

"Easy, Jake. You know what I meant. The point is…we're going to wait and reassess the situation. Decide later if there's a problem with the…thing."

_This is starting to really make me sick_, I growled. _I am this close to phasing, and telling them to cut the crap and get the hell off our land already. _

_You don't buy it? _

_Of course she doesn't, _Leah snorted. _She's not an idiot, Jake. None of us buy it. I know how Sam thinks better than anyone. He's probably betting on Bells dying anyway…_

_And he figures you'll be so mad…_I continued hesitantly.

_That I'll lead the attack myself,_ Jacob concluded. It bothered him, I could tell, that Leah and I would both come to that conclusion. It bothered him even more that it was probably true. If Bella were to die…he would forget every nice, warm thought he'd ever had about the Cullens.

And then it would be up to me to stand between him and the baby.

_I won't let you, _I whispered. Even I couldn't tell if I was warning him, or comforting him.

_I'll be counting on that, Clip_, Jake chuckled half-heartedly. _Leah…make a circuit—just to be sure. I'm going to have a talk with him, and I want to be absolutely _positive _that there isn't anything else going on while I'm phased. _

_Give me a break, Jacob, _Leah snorted. _You can phase in front of me. Despite my best efforts, I've seen you naked before—doesn't do much for me, so no worries. _Leah chuckled.

_I…I'll go, _I offered. I was still crazy about Jake—even now, standing so near him…my heart was beating faster than should even be legal. The others had been ignoring it, thank God, but I couldn't help but think about where my thoughts would turn if I were to see him phase…_Yeah. I should go. _

_I'll come with you, _Leah promised.

_Thanks, _I sighed, high-tailing it out of there as fast as possible. _I don't know how much longer I can take this, Leah, _I admitted after I felt Jake phase. _I joined his pack because I thought Bella and Cullen's safety depended on it…but what happens when all this is over? I'll be stuck in his head, just like you and Sam…_

_It sucks, _Leah nodded. _I know. Trust me, I know. But you've got to let him go. If he's in love with someone else…you've got to just let him go. _

_I'm trying. _

We had made our way around the area in record speed. We came up behind Jake and Seth, digging our back paws deep into the dirt to stop from smashing into them.

"Leah?"

It was Jared who had spoken, and Leah met his gaze, baring her teeth a little in warning. You didn't mess with Leah- nobody who ever did ended up saying it was worth the beating she would end up giving you.

"Leah, you _know_ you don't have to be here," Jared reminded her seeming surprised of her hostility.

_Better here than there, _she snarled.

Jake and I both gave her a warning look. We didn't want to make Jared think we were plotting an attack or anything.

"Sorry," Jared apologized. "Guess I shouldn't assume. But you don't have any ties to the bloodsuckers."

Leah looked deliberately at her brother, and then back at me. _I'm not leaving my brother, _she answered, forgetting that Jared couldn't hear her. _And somebody's got to be there for Frey when she has her inevitable mental breakdown. _

"You want to watch out for Seth," Jared nodded. "I get that. You're worried about Freya, too. Trust me, we all are. But Jake's not going to let anything happen to either of them. Seth's not afraid to be here, and Freya's a big girl. She can take care of herself. We want you back. Sam wants you back."

Leah's tail twitched slightly.

_Don't listen,_ I warned her. I imagined how painful it must be to hear that- that Sam wanted her back. If someone had told me that Jake needed me…I'd be back in his arms in an instant.

It was cruel to play on her feelings like that.

_I'm not naïve, _she murmured.

_You don't need him, Leah_, I reminded her. _You've got us now. _

_Thanks. _

"He told me to beg," Jared continued."He told me to literally get down on my knees if I have to. He wants you home, Lee-lee, where you belong."

With that, all hope of restraining Leah was lost. She exploded in a fury of cuss words, used in ways and arrangements that I'd never heard before in my life. It was a terrifying scene, and if I were Jared, I would have been running for my life. Seth and I had to step in front of her, to make sure she didn't attack him.

We all waited until she was done to say anything- Jared deserved to hear it all, anyway. In fact, I was halfway hoping Jake would repeat some of the things she'd said. But instead, he just said, "I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that Leah belongs wherever she wants to be."

Leah growled in agreement, glaring at Jared. I was glaring, too, wanting badly to rip my claws right across his ugly, lying face…

_Whoa there, Clip,_ Seth warned me. _Cool it. _

"Look…we're still family, ok? We'll get past the feud, but, until we do, you probably ought to stick to your land. Just so there aren't misunderstandings. Battles to the death are cool in movies, but they really suck when you're fighting your family. So…let's not let it come to that. Sam wouldn't want that either, am I right?" Jake spoke for us.

"Of course not!" Jared snapped. "We'll stick to our land. But where is _your_ land, Jacob? Is it vampire land?"

"Nah…I'm homeless, at the moment. But don't worry- this won't last forever…there isn't much time left. Okay? Then the Cullens'll probably get the heck out of here before they're driven out with torches and pitchforks, and Seth and Leah and Clip can all go home."

Leah and Seth whined—they didn't want Jake to leave us. I growled, because frankly, I was really ticked off. I mean, one second he's all "OMG! I love you so freaking much! Move in with me and my dad!" Then, next thing I know, he's telling me he's in love with our best friend, who was currently knocked up with Edward's mutant baby. As far as I was concerned, Jake had no right to be telling me where and when I go anywhere or do anything.

"Doesn't look like Clip's too happy, huh?" Jared mused. "But then again, she always has had a soft spot for bloodsuckers."

"Yeah," Jake huffed.

"I don't think she likes being told what to do, Jake."

The hell I didn't! But everybody knew that about me—it was a given, and not generally something Jake was usually concerned about.

"Look…leave Clip out of this, ok?" Jake sighed, running his hands through his hair. "She made her choice—we all did. So…if you don't have anything else on your mind…I think we should go."

"What if we need to talk?"

"Howl," Jake ordered. "But watch the line, alright? We'll come to you. And tell Sam that he doesn't need to send so many. We aren't looking for a fight."

Leah and I growled in unison; Jake glared. I guess we _weren't_ really helping the cause, were we? Leah and I looked at each other, rolling our eyes.

_I'm gonna go back to the house, _I informed them. _I need to check up on Bella…I really don't like leaving her alone. _

_Clip,_ Jake sighed. _She's in a house full of vampires. She is probably the most protected person in the entire state of Washington. What do you think is going to happen?_

_I don't know, _I admitted with a whine. _But I'm not taking any chances. I don't like leaving her by herself…and she doesn't like it when I leave, anyway. Am I allowed to phase, or do you think you'll need me later?_

_Nah, go ahead, _Jake shrugged. _Seth, why don't you go with her? You haven't had a break in a while. If something comes up that Leah and I can't handle, I'll give you two a howl. Okay?_

_Sure, _Seth and I nodded before racing back to the house.

_I'm going to stay wolf, though, _Seth informed us. _I don't like not being connected with you guys…it's weird enough not being able to hear Quil and the others._

_Whatever floats your boat, kid,_ Jake agreed. _See ya later, Clip,_ he called to me as I reached the tree where my clothes were hidden.

I didn't answer—I just went ahead and phased and changed.

When I got to the house, Seth was already there, his frame filling up the doorway as he trotted into the house. Karson was there, too, staring at Seth's wolf enviously. I followed Seth, running my fingers through my hair self-consciously. I wasn't sure I was up to talking with Karson just yet.

"Hey, Frey," Bella greeted me with a grin.

I looked at her, shock written on my face.

Bella looked…wow. She looked so much better. There had been such an improvement since I'd last seen her…she had color, and she was smiling at me. I hadn't seen her really smile since she left for her honeymoon. The hospital bed was gone, and had been replaced with the couch once again. There were no beeping monitors or tubes or wires anywhere to be found, but my friend was holding in her had a clear glass filled to the brim with blood.

"Hey, Bells," I grinned. "Look at you! You're looking great!"

"All thanks to you," she reminded me. "Jake told me it was your idea," she explained. "He told me about your fight, too…he feels awful, Frey. About what's happened between you two, what he said. He's sorry."

"I know," I nodded stiffly.

"So…what was that all about?" Emmett asked. "We heard you howling…kind of freaked us out, to be honest."

"Oh, that was nothing," I brushed off unceremoniously. "Sam sent a couple of wolves over to try and make a deal, make amends. They agreed to stay off our land. Leah and Jake are out there now, making sure they do."

I looked over at Bella, where she was sitting on the couch next to Edward. Her eyes were red, and I could have sworn I saw a tear streaking down her cheek.

"Bells…what's wrong?" I came and sat on the end of the couch, wrapping my arm around her shoulders.

"I…I don't like this," she sniffed, wiping at her eyes furiously. "I never wanted to rip your family apart, Frey. I feel awful!"

Pretty soon she was bawling. I hurried to the other room, bringing back a box full of Kleenex. "Hey, don't cry," I pleaded, wiping at her eyes with a tissue. "You haven't torn us apart. We're just fighting—all families fight. We'll move past it, just like we always do. It'll be fine…don't worry about us, ok?" I ordered her.

"I don't like seeing you upset because of me," she said seriously, her brown eyes locking on mine.

"I'm fine!" I laughed. "Honestly!"

"What about Jake?" she whispered, then bowed her head, as if ashamed that she'd even said his name.

The name…just hearing her say his name broke my heart. But I couldn't let her know that.

"I'm fine," I repeated, not sure who I was trying to convince. "Seriously. Jake...it's not like he can control his feelings, Bells. Who he loves…who he hates…it's all out of his control. It's out of anybody's control. And it isn't your fault," I assured her.

"He loves you," she smiled at me.

"Yeah, I know. But…he loves you, too." I shrugged, not knowing what else to say about the matter. "I never have liked to share, have I?" I joked, wiping her tears away again and handing her the box of tissues.

"No, I guess not," she chuckled.

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**Well...there it is! I hope you guys liked it well enough:) **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	10. It's Time to Cut the Crap

**Disclaimer: Twilight? Yeah. It isn't mine...as much as I wish it were! :) **

**Ok. I am absolutely ASHAMED with myself right now! It's been what? Over a MONTH? Jeez! I can do better than that, right? :) Well...I know where I'm going with this for the next few chapters, so it shouldn't be NEARLY as long until the next update! I know this one's kind of short, and my beta hasn't quite gotten to it yet because I wanted to get this up ASAP, but it's just chock-full of drama and exciting internal monologues! I hope you like it! **

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**Chapter Ten**

**Freya**

After my little conversation with Bella, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself about Jake. I mean, come on—can you blame me? I was totally in love with the guy, and he ends up being still in love with one of my best friends. Overall, it was a real sucky situation. So, being the dramatic werewolf chick that I am, I made my way outside and sat down on the stairs with a sigh.

As I sat there, I thought about some things. My family, for instance. I wondered how Riff was doing—how my father was getting along. Dad still thought I was dangerously ill; I wondered if he was worried about me? I wondered how hard he'd tried to get up to the Cullen's house to see me…or if he'd been too busy with Mom to remember to worry at all.

Then again…before Mom showed up, Dad had paid hardly any attention to me. He'd been so wrapped up in his own self-pity that he'd forgotten that he had a family. He'd forgotten that he had a young, scared, and extremely confused werewolf of a daughter to take care of. When Mom decided to grace us with her presence once more, Dad had…woken up. That was probably the one good thing to come out of Mom's return—Dad was happy again.

I remembered what it was like to be happy. Every moment with Jake…each one seemed to be tattooed on my heart. Every touch, every smile…I couldn't seem to let him go. I was in love with him, body and soul, just as I always had been—even before I'd realized it. I remembered walking hand in hand on the beach, and the way he'd wrap his arm around me when it got colder during the night, even though neither of us really got cold. Those were happy times, right there.

I sighed, my head sinking deeper into my hands. I felt…old. I felt older than my years, and heavy, thinking about Jake. I felt old and heavy and just plain defeated. I couldn't help but realize that there was nothing I could do now; Bella was never going to let go of Edward, Jake was never going to forget about Bella, and I was never going to get over Jake. Not quite a love triangle…a love cube. That's what this whole mess was—a love cube.

If we were a love cube…then wouldn't that make it a love triangular pyramid? Or was it even 3D at all? So we were a love _square?_

I was just trying to figure this out when I saw a huge shadow that I was beginning to recognize towering over me. "Hey, Karson," I greeted him with a sigh, sliding over on the step to make a little more room for him.

"Hey…Karson?" I asked, not looking up at him because I was afraid he would see my eyes, and know that I was pretty darn close to tears.

"Hmph."

Well, he'd never been exactly vocal, had he?

"I've got a question to ask you," I continued.

"Shoot."

"If there are four people involved instead of three…would it be called a love cube?" I inquired. Looking back, I can get why Karson gave me the old what-the-hell-are-you-talking-about look; this was kind of a random question, especially considering the state in which I'd left the house.

I guess I'd gotten so used to having Jake and everybody inside my head that I'd stopped explaining myself when I said something random. Admittedly, it was nice to have somebody not understand. So, instead of shaking my head and telling him to ignore the question, I continued. "Seriously, this is really bothering me. Is it a love cube?"

"A cube had six vertices," Karson frowned.

"So…a love square?" I concluded with a sigh.

"Yeah."

Drat. "Love cube" sounded a lot better than "love square". Now that all my weird, random rambling questions had been answered,I turned to Karson and got down to business. "You don't have to come out here, you know," I reminded him. "My pity parties are my own business. I didn't invite you."

"Maybe I just felt like crashing," he responded in that ridiculously deep voice of his.

"Well…here's the party!" I gestured around at the empty, silent forest. "Great turnout, huh?"

"Most people are smart enough to stay away from a sulking werewolf," Karson shrugged. "I'm just out here to make sure you don't do anything too incredibly stupid."

"You have such faith in me," I chuckled.

"How long are you going to keep this up?" he asked me.

"What are you talking about?"

"This…act you've got going on," he elaborated. "How long are you going to play the victim here? Cause if you're like this all the time…I don't blame Jake for leaving you. Nobody likes a sulker, Freya."

"I'm not…sulking," I shrugged, more stung by the comment than I was willing to admit. "And he didn't leave me. We…left each other. It was mutual."

"Does it matter?" Karson asked. "You're not together anymore, and yeah, you're devastated. I get it. But could you at least pretend like you're not borderline suicidal? Cause frankly, Bella's not nearly as stupid as she sounds sometimes; she can tell you're upset, and she knows it's partially her fault."

"Why do you care?" I challenged him. "You're not even a part of this family. You just show up here and think that it's ok to criticize me in everything that I do! You think you know everything, Karson, but you don't."

"I know more than you think," he retaliated. "I've been through some tough shit in my lifetime, believe me. I've seen things; I've done things…things that would have you screaming like a little girl watching the end of the first Harry Potter movie. So excuse me for trying to make sure the naive little _pretender _of a werewolf doesn't kill the girl she's trying so hard to keep safe!"

"Oh, you think you've had it so tough!" I yelled. "Well, guess what? I've had it tough, too!" I turned my neck and pointed to my scar, just for emphasis.

"This isn't about you, Freya!" Karson roared. "This is about Bella—Bella and…whatever it is she's got growing inside her. You want Bella to get out of this alive? Well, making her feel all depressed about your miserable excuse of a love life isn't helping anything. You wanna cry? Fine. Get it all out, right now, where she can't see you."

He was, of course, right. My crying over Jake was selfish…and it wasn't helping anybody. I needed to build a bridge and get over it. Of course…just saying that to myself brought on a fresh wave of tears, and had me clinging to Karson as if he were life itself.

"Look…I'm sorry, Freya," he apologized, calming down significantly, obviously feeling awful about making me cry. "But you've got to cut the crap already. Jake doesn't love you the same way you love him. It hurts, yeah, but that's the truth. You can't go through your life sobbing like a maniac whenever he happens to cross your mind. He's going to move on. You have to, too."

With that, he detangled himself from my grasp and left me there, crying.

So…yeah. I basically hated myself at this moment. I mean, come on—I was acting like a kindergartener, crying over my first boyfriend. I was supposed to be this awesome, hardcore werewolf, and I was sitting on the front steps of a house full of vampires crying my eyes out. Meanwhile, my best friend in the world was inside, knocked up with her vampire husband's mutant baby, knowing that she was probably going to die, and she hadn't shed a tear.

What was wrong with me lately?

Ever since I'd started going out with Jake…I hadn't really been myself. Before we started dating, I'd been independent. I'd been the kind of girl who shot first, asked questions later. I used to be the kind of girl who wasn't afraid to defy her very existence as a werewolf to protect a good friend. Now, Jake had decided that he liked Bella more—which, to be honest, should not have been such a big surprise, since Jake never was real dependable—and I just couldn't make myself brush it off.

Love had made me weak.

Well, it was time for this werewolf to toughen up a little.

I didn't need Jake or his love to be strong—I was strong enough without him, wasn't I? It wasn't like losing him had been cutting off my arms, or my legs…I was whole. Perfectly, completely whole…physically, anyway. Mentally. Emotionally…not so much, but you know what? I'd had enough of the whining crap. Karson was right. This wasn't about me. Thank God he'd been able to get that through that thick skull of mine.

I wiped my eyes on my sleeve, and took a couple of deep breaths. I lifted the shirt over my head, folding it neatly on the ground. I shivered—it was nighttime now, and the thin tank top I'd been wearing under my shirt really just wasn't cutting it. Once I'd gathered all my borrowed clothes in a pile at my feet, I phased. I took off running into the forest.

Freya had been missing lately.

But guess what?

She's back.

**Jake**

Alright, I'm not gonna lie—I felt awful, about what I did to Freya. I'd never imagined that I would be lucky enough to get a girl like her. Beautiful, strong, smart, fearless, and absolutely vicious when she wanted to be, Freya Selene Lust was one of a kind. She was my best friend…she knew everything about me. Even in human form, she knew exactly what I was thinking, oftentimes even before I really knew myself. Whenever I needed her…she was always there.

And what do I do? I fall for her—like any smart guy is likely to do—kiss her, tell her I love her…only to realize that I'm not over Bella yet. And then, of course, since Frey knows me so well…I wasn't able to hide it from her for a second. The moment I realized I still had feelings for Bells, Freya had seen it in my eyes, felt it in my kiss. Naturally.

So that's what I was thinking about, as I took my third shift on patrol in a row—Freya. Was I making her run an extra shift? No. Which, of course, translated into letting Seth and Leah both get an extra break, also…so I was left to run for nearly nine hours straight. Way to go, Jake. She may have ended it between the two of you, but boy, Clip's still got you so totally _whipped._

It wasn't like I didn't still love Freya, or anything. God, no! I was totally crazy about her. But…I was kind of crazy about Bella, too. It wasn't fair to Clip to have to share me with Bella; she had more pride than that. So…I let her go. I can't have Bella, I can't have Freya…

So I'm running around in circles in the middle of the forest at three in the morning.

Not only that, but I was getting those ridiculous Glee songs that Frey used to sing all the time stuck in my head. No joke—I was on the tenth repetition of "Don't Stop Believing". If this kept going on for much longer, I seriously might have to borrow my dad's hunting gun and shoot myself in the head.

That's when Clip saved me.

_I don't know what your problem is, Jacob Black, but stop obsessing over Glee and get your furry werewolf tail back to the house, _she demanded, breaking through the trees in a bound, and landing right in front of me on the trail she, Leah, Seth, and I had inadvertently created with our patrols around the Cullen home.

_You always did know how to make an entrance, huh, Clip?_ I chuckled, so glad that she was teasing me again that I decided to completely ignore the Glee comment.

_Just…get some sleep, 'kay? We don't need our Alpha passing out and getting…eaten by a narwhal, or something. _

_A narwhal? _I asked. _Why a narwhal? _

_Because, _she explained, _narwhals are the unicorns of the sea—they are magical, and they are coming for you. So…get back to the house. NOW,_ she barked.

_You never did make a like of sense, Freya,_ I sighed, turning around and heading away from our path, and back toward the Cullen home.

_That's why you love me,_ she responded cheerily. Then, she froze, not sure what to do. The next few seconds were filled with totally awkward silence.

_Yeah,_ I said with a grin._ That's why I love you. You want backup? I can get Leah or Seth…_

_Whatever, _she shrugged. _I've got it handled out here, for now, but if one of them wants to get out of the house, I'm not going to deny them the pleasure of hanging out with me._

_Modest, too…I'll send someone. See you on the flip side. _I could tell she wanted a little bit of time away from me; I decided to go ahead and phase out so that she didn't have to listen to me worrying about her.

_Yup._

As I walked my way back to the Cullen house in my cut-offs, I made myself a promise. No—I was not going to try and get back together with Freya, not unless I magically fell out of love with Bella. However…I was going to do my best to be friends with her. The casual joking, teasing…the stuff that used to come naturally to the both of us was going to take a little work to keep going for a while. I could tell.

When I got back to the house, I opened the front door and stepped inside unceremoniously; it was no longer a big deal for me to be visiting the vampires. I headed over to the couch, where Bella sat drinking her midnight snack through a painfully clear straw. I could see the dark red of the blood as I traveled up the straw and into her mouth…and I could see the expression on her face as she guiltily enjoyed the sensation.

"No judging," was all she said when she caught me staring.

"Hey," I defended myself with a grin. "I'm not judging anybody, Bells. How are you feeling?"

"Much better," she admitted. "Thanks to you and Frey…I'm feeling wonderful."

"Good," I smiled at her, wrapping my arm around her shoulders, much to Edward's disapproval. "So…what does that taste like?" I asked, not really sure I wanted to know, but trying to get a laugh out of my friend. I just loved to hear her laugh. It was almost as nice a laugh as Freya's…light, like bells, but not as hearty as Clip's.

"Like…cranberries, and…saltwater taffy," she groaned.

"Ew."

"I know, right? I should totally be hating this…but I'm loving it way too much," she sighed.

"Well, you've embraced every other aspect of vampirism," I shrugged. "Why not the blood-drinking part?"

She just laughed, a little, adorable nervous laugh, as she drank up another big slurp of blood. She gave a satisfied sigh as she handed the empty cup back to Edward, and rested her hands on her bulging belly.

"You're looking really…"

"Pregnant?" she supplied with a laugh. "Yeah, I know. He's growing fast…kind of like you," she added as a side thought.

"Whoa," I said, holding my hands up. "Don't go comparing me to your little hybrid baby, Bells."

She just rolled her eyes, my comment bouncing right off her. "I just meant…your growth spurt. You grew so fast…I remember, every time I'd see you, you'd be a couple inches taller than the time before. He's having a growth spurt, too," she smiled, rubbing her stomach affectionately.

It was kind of making me sick, to be honest. This kid…this kid was killing her, sucking all the energy from her body until she didn't have any more to give, and growing so insanely fast that Bella couldn't keep up. It had even started kicking, breaking her ribs from the inside. She was so covered in bandages; you might think she was a mummy at a first glance. Yet…she loved the thing. She loved it more than life itself. I could see that clearer, now, as I watched her and that sick, obsessive loving expression on her face.

I guess…I guess Freya could see it all along, how much Bella loved this kid. That was why I was here, wasn't it? Because I couldn't bear to let Freya fight Sam on her own twice; because I couldn't bear to let Bella be killed by my brothers. I was here because I loved Freya…and because I loved Bella.

Things in my life couldn't just go smoothly, could they? They just had to get all mixed up and mangled…I just never got a break. No one like me ever got a break. Freya, Paul, Sam, Quil, the others…we were nonhumans, living in a human world. Naturally, things would be difficult for us.

Humans just had it so easy.

Edward had taken Bella upstairs again for another X-Ray. (I guess the baby had kicked, and possibly broken her pelvis). It suppose it had gone well…I mean, her pelvis wasn't broken—yet. I was talking with Bella afterword, while Edward and Rosalie were putting the equipment away, trying to get a smile on her face, when Rosalie walked into the room. "Ugh," she sneered. "Somebody throw out the dog."

You see…Rosalie and I…well, let's just say that we hadn't quite hit it off. She was…snobby, rude, and downright annoying. So, what did I do? Of course- dumb blonde jokes.

"Hey, Psycho," I called across the room to where she was standing with her arms over her chest. "Have you heard this one? How do a blonde's brain cells die?"

She, of course, didn't say anything; She just stood there with her arms crossed, death glare in place. It had no effect on me, however; Rosalie's death glare had nothing on Freya's—when she was really, really pissed about something, anyway.

"Well? Do you know it or not?" I egged her on. She, of course, looked away at the TV screen, pointedly ignoring me. I didn't have to ask Edward to know that she hadn't heard it before. "Awesome. So you'll enjoy this one, bloodsucker—it's not very often you get to hear a new joke. A blonde's brain cells die _alone_."

Personally, I thought the joke was hilarious. I mean, come on—"they die alone"? How awesome is that? Rosalie didn't quite appreciate my humor, though…I think what clued me in was the way she hissed at me. "I have killed a hundred times more often than you have, you disgusting beast. Don't forget that."

I just laughed. Was I in the mood for a fight? Sure- why not? But the look Bella was giving me was a hundred times scarier than anything Rosalie could every say to get me ticked.

"Cut it out already, Jacob," she ordered, a glare now firmly in place.

"Right," I nodded. "I'll be good."

"Good dog," Rosalie taunted.

"Woof."

"Did you say something?" Edward asked, looking around the room at all of us. I was surprised; he hadn't spoken much since the pack and I showed up. Mostly, he just sat in silence next to his dying wife's bed, holding her hand and whispering to her every once in a while.

None of us had said anything—nothing of mention, anyway. It was just mine and Rosalie's bickering…and Edward wasn't interested in that. Edward was a vampire; he wouldn't have to ask if someone had said something, he would know whether anything had been said. His hearing was just as good as mine, after all.

He and Bella were staring at each other, confused.

And that's when it clicked.

Well…for me, anyway. I guess Edward was a little bit slower, because he asked his wife, "What were you thinking about a minute ago?"

"Just…Esme's island. And feathers."

I would have asked, but I had a feeling that I really, really didn't want to know.

"Say something else," Edward whispered.

"Like what? Edward…what's going on?" Bella asked. I could tell that she was feeling confused, and maybe a little bit scared.

Suddenly, Edward did the weirdest thing. I mean, even Rosalie's jaw went down with a crack. Edward put both hands on his wife's bulging belly, and put his ear down to listen.

"The f—" He swallowed, and corrected himself. "It…the baby likes the sound of your voice."

For a second, everything was absolutely silent. Except for, you know, our thoughts…or at least mine. 'Cause I'd caught on to what was happening a while ago, if you remember back that far. Maybe it was because I'd been inside Freya's head so much lately, but I was starting to get sharp about that kind of thing, you know?

"_Holy crow, you can hear him!"_ Bella shouted into the silence. The next moment, she winced.

"Shh…" Edward hushed, rubbing the part of Bella's stomach where the baby must have kicked her. "You startled it…him."

They went on for a little while longer, talking about the baby, it's thoughts about Bella, about Edward, and such. I listened, not particularly interested, but afraid that leaving would seem insulting to Bella.

Eventually, the conversation had gone on so long without anyone saying a word to me that I figured I wasn't necessarily needed. I headed downstairs—Emmett, Carlisle, and some of the others were hunting, and Karson must have headed back to Clip's house, because the place was deserted.

Quiet; just the way I liked it.

I plopped myself down on the sofa, and took myself a well-deserved nap.

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**Well...there you have it! Chapter ten, everybody! *Que thunderous applause! :):)* I hope you guys liked this chapter! And PLEASE forgive me for taking so long with this one! The next chapter should come quicker:) Thank you all SO much for being so patient with me!**

**Penny for your thoughts? ;)**


	11. It's Times Like These That Make Me Smile

**Disclaimer: Neither Twilight nor Breaking Dawn or any of the other books in that series are mine. They're all Stephanie Meyer's. The characters you do not recognize, however, belong to me:)**

**OH MY GOODNESS!**

**It has been SOOOO long! I'm serious, I had the most horrible case of writer's block...that, and I'm playing in the orchestra for our school's musical, and rehearsals have got me practically living in the orchestra pit. I am so incredibly sorry for the horrible delay, but I hope this chapter makes up for it! Thanks to everybody who's still reading this, despite my current inability to update within a reasonable time period!**

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**Chapter Eleven**

**Freya**

I was actually feeling a lot better, now that I'd decided to get back to my former, hard-core attitude. You remember don't you? That tough exterior I'd had before Jake had softened me up? It was back—Freya Selene Lust was back, and feeling better than ever…or, at least, better than I'd felt in a while.

I was flying through the trees, reveling in the way the wind whipped my fur out behind me. I didn't know how fast I was going—everything was a blur, though, which was pretty impressive considering the fact that my eyesight was nearly as sharp as the vampires'. My paws beat beneath me in a mighty rhythm on the ground, reminding me that I could do anything. Walk on water, canoe on land, get a 37 on the ACT; I was invincible. I could feel it in my bones, this raw power that seemed to have consumed me.

I'd forgotten what it was like to be a werewolf lately, and let me tell you—it felt so good to remind myself.

The world passed by me in a blur, my thoughts speeding through my mind almost as fast. Everything was in its place again. I was a wolf…and I was in the forest. My natural habitat, you know? This was where I was supposed to be—where I was _born_ to be.

I was one with myself, and one with nature; and both nature and I both knew that we belonged together. It was peaceful, this agreement the forest and I had come to. It had been a while since I'd been able to run so fast and free without thoughts about Jake or my parents or school or anything slowing me down.

So, naturally, I was kind of ticked off when Seth came hurtling through the woods at top speed, knocking me sideways to the ground and crushing me under his weight.

_SETH CLEARWATER! _I roared, throwing him off of me with a mighty shove. _What on God's green Earth do you think you're DOING?_

_Jeez, Clip,_ he chuckled, shaking himself off. _Take a chill pill. _

_Sorry I snapped, _I apologized with a sigh. _You took me a little by surprise. So. What's up? Jake send you out on patrol?_

_Well, I sent myself, _he corrected me. _Bella wants you back at the house. Says it's kind of important. _

_Oh…is she ok? _I wondered, suddenly super worried. Bella hadn't hurt herself, had she? Or had the baby broken more of her ribs?

_Yup, _Seth nodded. _Two, actually. Carlisle thought he'd heard the pelvis crack, too, but it was fine in the x-ray._

Wow. How many ribs had my best friend broken in the past day? Two? Four? Would the baby break her pelvis next? And if so, what breaks next? Her spine?

_Clip, worrying isn't going to help anything, _Seth soothed me. _Just go see what it is she wants, ok? She was really eager to see you. _

_Yeah, yeah, _I grumbled. I'd never liked being told what to do—especially when it was Seth bossing me around. I may not have been as big and tall as he'd gotten in the past few months, but that's no excuse for him to not respect his elders. Seth must have heard me, because he started laughing crazily to himself, and I took off in a frenzy toward the house.

"What's up, Bells?" I sang, human once again, as I made my way into the house. "Jake giving you trouble or something? 'Cause I know he talks tough, but I could totally take him in a fight. Just because I'm not Hulk-sized…" I trailed off as I realized that the entire first floor of the house seemed to be empty. "Bella?" I called. "Carlisle? Esme? Anybody?"

"Oh, Freya," Esme breathed, rushing down the stairs toward me. "You might want to leave."

"Why?" I asked with a frown. "What happened?"

"Bella…bent over, to pick up a cup she'd dropped," Esme explained worriedly. "The…the placenta was torn. She…she's not doing well. Puking up blood everywhere…speaking gibberish…she's in hysterics."

"She'll be okay, though?" I asked, chewing on my bottom lip. I didn't know much about babies or pregnancy at all—Leah and I had discovered that becoming wolves had pretty much rendered us unable to have kids. But the placenta didn't sound too important.

"The placenta…is what gets air and food to the baby, from inside the womb," Esme explained to me gently, seeming to understand that_ I_ didn't understand. "She's dying, Freya. The baby's dying, too."

I thought then about that day in my truck outside the airport, when Bella had told me she was pregnant. I thought about the terrified, determined look on her face when she'd asked me for my help. I thought about the way her voice shook with tears on the phone that morning when she called me. Out of everyone she could have talked to—Rosalie, Esme, Alice, Carlisle, even Edward—she'd chosen me.

I had promised Bella that I would protect her baby, and I had promised myself that I would protect her. The thought that I was so close to completely failing at fulfilling both these promises was unbearable for me. I just couldn't allow it. Freya Lust never went back on a promise.

"Neither of them are going to die, Esme," I tried to sooth the vampire. "Not if I can help it," I finished with a growl, running past her toward the spiral staircase. It was hard not to think that the last time I'd been on these stairs, I was leading Bella down the aisle.

"There's no use! She's gonna die, Edward! We might as well accept that!" I heard Jake shouting. I followed his voice, throwing open the door to the room. Edward was bent over a syringe, some clear, sparkling liquid quickly filling it. "What are you doing?"

"I am going to inject her with my venom," Edward explained coolly. "It's the only way to save her—she never planned to get out of this human, anyway."

"What about the treaty?" Jake challenged.

"Jake…you're the Alpha," I reminded him. "You can make a change in the treaty. I suggest you do it now, before it's too late to save your little girlfriend."

"Clip…"

"Say it, Jake," I growled, hitting him with my infamous glare. "Now. Or I'll inject her myself. Nothing in the treaty about that, is there?" I grinned, proud of myself for finding the loophole. "Of course, the whole process would be faster and more efficient if a more…practiced hand saved her."

"Fine," Jake snapped. "Do whatever the hell you want. It's a lost cause anyway—she's as good as dead."

"I've never been so disappointed in you my entire life, Jacob Black," I sighed, sending a nice, angry glare his way. "Get out of here. Edward and I can handle it."

He stood there, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water, hardly able to believe that he'd just been dismissed by the werewolf midget. At last, Jake turned around slowly and left the room, giving the door a good slam as he went.

Edward was already getting to work, plunging his teeth into his wife's skin strategically. I watched in guilty fascination at the way his fangs shone in the light from the lamp hanging above the operating table Edward had somehow managed to set up in the short amount of time he'd had to do so. After several quick bites, he raised the syringe above her chest and plunged it in, injecting the venom straight to her heart.

"We'll need to do some CPR," Edward informed me blankly. "Help."

I nodded, coming to press my hands over my friend's chest. I began with the compressions as Edward pumped air into her lungs. She was breathing, and the venom was spreading. Once breath was rushing in and out of her lungs on their own accord, Edward had me continue to pound on her heart while he picked up a shiny silver scalpel. I averted my eyes, not wanting to look on as Edward made the incision above her abdomen. She twisted and screamed in pain, and I held her still, trying to calm her down.

It was then that I heard the cry.

It was like a siren, piercing, loud, and life-altering. Edward held up a glistening little baby, gasping for breath and not looking very happy with its abrupt arrival into the world. "Congratulations on your little baby girl," Carlisle said softly from the doorway, holding a warm towel out to Edward.

Edward was still in doctor mode, a result of extensive medical training I'd never even suspected until this moment. He handed off the baby, and began to stitch up the incision. He then came to check on my progress.

"Let me," he offered, and I stepped aside, wiping sweat off my forehead. I turned to Carlisle, who had the newborn wrapped up in the towel. He held out his arms, offering the child to me. I took her carefully and smiled.

"Hello, baby," I cooed. "You want to see your Momma, don't you?" the baby girl seemed to almost nod, and her eyes grew wide with excitement. "Bella, do you want to hold your little girl?" I asked.

Wordlessly, Bella held her arms open with a pained smile. Her face was dripping with sweat, and she was shaking as the venom began to affect her…but as she took her baby in her arms, something seemed to fall into place. The two of them, mother and child, both became complete in that moment, and I could see the love and devotion in the expression on both their faces. I turned away, embarrassed at witnessing something so private.

"Renesmee," Bella whispered, brushing her fingertips over her baby girl's face before passing out on the operating table.

"Renesmee," I sighed, smiling at the two of them. "Beautiful, isn't it?" I asked, turning around to the room in general.

Carlisle nodded, smiling hugely at the infant as he picked her up out of her mother's arms. "Edward, I am going to take Renesmee down to Rosalie. She will watch her while I try to figure out what she eats…she looks hungry." The baby squirmed in his arms, seeming already to know what the word meant.

Edward nodded wordlessly at Carlisle's announcement, and went to sit by his wife.

"Is she going to be okay?" I asked with a quiet voice. After witnessing the miracle of Renesmee's birth, and the moment between Bella and her baby…I had never felt so small. It was as if for the first time in my life, I realized that my time on earth didn't even matter. I was a wolf—I couldn't have children, I couldn't leave the reservation to go to school. The biggest impact I could ever make on this world was to kill its vampires. Once I died? So did my legacy.

"I think she is," Edward nodded. "Bella's always been strong, stronger than I am. Stronger than any of us, really, except maybe Carlisle. If we can live through this…so can she. I have faith in her."

"Is there anything more I can do?"

"Carlisle and I are probably going to set up a morphine drip as soon as we can," he sighed, running the hand not holding Bella's through his hair. "We'll see if we can't get her to sleep the worst of it off, the way we did with you. But…we won't need help with that. Besides, it'll involve a lot of needles."

I shuddered. "Ugh. Needles."

"Yeah," he chuckled. "If you want to go downstairs and watch Renesmee…Bella always seemed so adamant that you be close to her, since we got back. She would want you to watch her, until Bella wakes up."

"I will, then," I nodded. I turned toward the door, but paused for a moment. "Edward?" I turned around and looked at him. His eyes lifted, and met mine from across the room. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "For…for splitting up your family the way I did, when you and Bella came home. I…didn't like doing it, believe me. It's just that, she was so scared, and…she came to me, you know? I couldn't let her down."

"Everything turned out alright in the end, didn't it?" he asked me with a smile. "So don't worry about it. I actually…admire the way you stood up to my family. It's nice to know Bella has such loyal friends. Even after everything with Jacob…I am sorry, about that. I've never really liked him, but…"

"It's okay," I shrugged. "I mean…break-ups suck, but what are you gonna do? It's over. I'm over it, he's over it—there's no use dwelling on it now."

He nodded, smiling. "Good for you." Then, he turned back to Bella, who was beginning to whimper and squirm on the table. I decided that I didn't really want to watch the painful venom take its course—I knew how badly it stung, how it could make your heart race—and decided to go someplace where I would actually be doing some good.

When I got downstairs, I was met with one of the biggest surprises I'd ever seen in my life.

Jacob was sitting on the pristine white couch, a tiny baby rocking back and forth in his arms. The girl's huge brown eyes were staring at him intently, as if there were nobody else in the world except him. But then, a stair creaked beneath my feet, and those big brown eyes shot toward me. Suddenly, they were filled with excitement. The baby squealed, holding her arms out to me.

"Hello, Renesmee," I smiled at the baby girl. I hurried down the steps and to the couch, where Jacob was sitting with an awe-struck look on his face. "Here," I said gently. "Hand her to me."

He did as I asked, clearly not quite comprehending what was going on. I took the baby with a smile, loving the warm feeling in the pit of my stomach I got when she wrapped her tiny hand around my finger.

"Isn't she beautiful," I sighed, using my free hand to stroke the thick head of hair Rensmee already had growing. It was a gorgeous chestnut color, just like her father's. Her eyes were the exact copy of Bella's. She was smart like her father, sweet like her mother, and had an almost sassy manner of getting what she wanted that was all her own.

"Yeah," Jake sighed. "Absolutely."

"You two will be good together," I noted. "She'll love you the same way you love her—even if she doesn't know it yet. I'm happy for you, Jake."

"Freya…"

"No," I cut him off, sensing an apology coming on. "No, Jake, it's okay. I understand now. It was never Bella, was it?" I mused. "It was Renesmee. You imprinted on Renesmee, before she was even born. I'm glad that…that you've found what you've been missing."

"Clip, don't do this," Jake sighed. "Don't act all…understanding about what I did to you. I hurt you, Clip, and I hate myself for it. Even if you're right, even if I did it because part of me knew that Renesmee was it—that's really no excuse."

"Don't feel bad," I pleaded. "I'm going to find somebody, someday…I know it," I smiled at him. "So don't feel bad. I want you to be happy, Jake. That's really all I've ever wanted for you. You're my best friend."

"Thanks," he smiled at me. His arm came up, wrapping itself around my shoulders and pulling me close. I rested my head on his shoulder, and looked down at the beautiful baby girl I was holding in my arms.

For a moment, I closed my eyes and allowed myself to pretend. I pretended that this was my family—not someone else's. I pretended that Jacob and I were together again—that we would always be together…that we would one day have a family like this one…

But then I remembered that this was impossible. With a sigh, I opened my eyes again, and lifted them to the T.V., where one of the Harry Potter movies was playing on ABC Family.

"I would never have pegged the Cullen's as an ABC Family type of group," I frowned. "I always pictured them watching, like, chess tournaments, or Vampire Diaries. You know?"

Jake just laughed, and rested his head on mine. Soon, his breathing had slowed, and I could tell that he was asleep. Renesmee, too, had her eyes shut tight and was breathing steadily, her grip on my finger had slackened. I smiled to myself for a moment, and decided just because something was impossible didn't mean that I couldn't make believe, only for a little while.

I closed my eyes, and allowed myself to fall asleep on Jacob's shoulder.

**Carson**

When I first started working for the Volturi, I was a little antsy about the whole situation. But can you blame me, really? Caius had never been really that fond of werewolves, and I must have been his least favorite werewolf since Dracula started telling stories about me way back in the day. Sure, I'd managed to slay every single one of his wives from 1500-1812, and yeah, I'd called him some nasty names, and ok, I'll admit, I did cheat in that one poker game we were forced to play together. But that's no reason to get nasty.

At any rate, Caius hated me…which basically meant that Aro and Marcus hated me, too. I think that they thought of me as their muscle—like…like a big furry Hulk, or something. I didn't know. But, being a werewolf, I didn't really trust the vampires at all…and being their muscle-y, fur-tastic Hulk was pretty much at the very bottom of my Things I Like To Do For Fun list, but what _else_ was I going to do? Aro and the others had me practically dangling by the balls here—I'd do just about anything they asked me to.

It's not like I was being paid well or anything, either. I wasn't getting paid at all, actually…which I guess makes me pretty much their slave more than anything else. Yes…I was the werewolf slave to the King of the Sparkles. My mother would be so proud.

However, I was going to earn my freedom soon. Aro had promised me, after all, and he never broke a promise.

Well…

Almost never.

But he meant it this time, I could tell by the look in his eye when he'd told me so. Werewolves, we had a sort of intuition about these things. This time next month, I was going to be _free…_

All thanks to my dear little friend, Freya.

Yes…she really was at the center of everything, wasn't she? She was hot, oh, God, yes, but sort of intimidating—not really my type. That, and she was big into the pity parties lately. More than once I'd had to go out of my way to cheer the wannabe wolf up.

Oh, yeah, I knew that she wasn't a werewolf. Not a real one, anyway. I knew all about real werewolves, and Freya? She was nowhere close. Anyone who a) thinks that the job of a werewolf is to protect people (I mean, every werewolf knows that our duty is to bite and eat people, not to _protect_ them) b) can change form whenever they like (I only wish I had this luxury,) or c) can't tell when they're being played like a winning hand in a game of poker is _so_ not a werewolf.

Everything about Freya was just wrong. She was way too smart for a wolf, and way too small. Even for her kind of wolf, she was absolutely tiny. My wolf could crush her wolf to a pulp without even trying. And I wasn't even the biggest of my kind out there. Everything about her screamed "not werewolf!" yet…she somehow _was._ Well…kind of. She was more like…a shape-shifter. That's what Aro called it—a shape-shifter.

Anyway…Freya may have been all wrong, but my plan was all _right._ Err…Aro's plan, that is, since he was the head honcho of this whole operation. I was older than him- by a thousand years, at least- yet he was so much smarter than me! It sucked, I'm not going to lie. Being stupid was the curse of a wolf. We'd never been an intelligent race, which was why we were enslaved so easily.

My plan was foolproof. I knew, because I was a fool, and even I couldn't mess it up. Aro had sent me to the American Midwest and ordered me to hide out in some barn somewhere. I didn't really understand it until Tony "Riff" Lust came poking his head inside. Once I'd gotten his trust, it was only too easy to worm my way into the Lust household. Freya had argued my case vehemently—a bit ironic, since I was the one who was going to—

Wait a second.

Aro warned me about this. About telling anyone the plan. He warned me not to trust anybody…not even myself. So why should I trust you? Ha. That's right—I got you. There is no way I am telling you my entire plan, so that you can go blabbing to Freya. So, just sit back and relax, before I make you.

Anyway…my point is that my plan was going perfectly. I was getting to know Freya pretty well, between reading her diary, talking with her parents and closest friends, and eavesdropping on all her conversations. Honestly, in a house full of vampires, I have no idea how anybody hadn't caught me yet. I mean, they were all so focused on this Bella chick that they'd forgotten all about Carson.

Seriously, though. Who is that stupid? You let some strange, dirty, mysterious werewolf you've known for less than a day run loose around your city, without knowing his intentions or anything else about him? For all they knew, I'd bitten the entire town of Forks and was getting ready to lead a werewolf army against the vampire coven.

I mean, I wasn't—I had strict orders from Aro not to bite anyone, except, you know, me…fleas are a bitch, believe me. So…it was a good idea, but I'd have to try it after my amazing plan was completed.

I watched as Freya looked down at the little baby girl, with such…longing in her eyes. She wanted a family, I could tell…I could also tell that she never could have a family. She was alone, and besides—women shape shifters couldn't have kids. I'd figured that much out from a long, deep conversation with Leah. I'd been discovering lately that you can learn a lot about a person simply by staring at them and saying nothing, and letting them fill the empty space with words they would regret later.

So, as I watched Freya, a huge smile began to make its way across my face. Aro had told me a different step to take in the plan…but I'd just had a magnificent idea. I watched them for a moment longer, feeling absolutely evil, before I sped away.

Once I reached the Lust home, I hurried inside, to Freya's room where I'd been staying the past few days. The house was empty for the moment, except for the mother—but she was never quite on her game, anyway. I picked up the phone, and dialed.

"Carson, I thought I told you to call me from a pay phone," Aro sighed.

"Oh…crap," I muttered. I'd forgotten all about that lecture. "Well…anyway, Aro, I've got an idea."

"Oh, God, Carson…how many times do I have to tell you? No, you may not start a boy band with Voldemort. He's not real," Aro groaned.

"He is too!" I shouted into the phone. "And…and that's not what I was going to say, anyway."

Aro took a breath, obviously expecting something stupid and ridiculous to come out of my mouth. Little did he know that I actually had thought up a legitimately good idea. I had done something smart, and I was itching to show Aro how intelligent I could be, when I wanted.

"Tell me," he sighed.

And so I did.

* * *

**You weren't expecting that little plot twist, now were you? It's okay- neither was I. It'll be interesting to see where this leads things, huh? I'll try to have chapter twelve up ASAP!**

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	12. Reconciliation Brings Peace to My Soul

**Disclaimer: Twilight does NOT belong to me. My characters and any original twists and turns to the plot are mine, but everything you recognize belongs to Stephanie Meyer:)**

**Oh my goodness! I FINALLY updated this story! I'm so sorry it took me so long, but I finally did it! And I had a major revelation this afternoon, and I totally know where I want this story to go now:) Hopefully updates will be a lot quicker here on out! Thanks for your patience, to anyone still reading these!**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

**Freya**

The next few days were passed in tense apprehension as Bella struggled for her life (afterlife?) under the watchful eyes of Carlisle and Edward. I tried to ignore the screams, moaning, and groaning coming from the room upstairs where she was being transformed…but it was hard. It reminded me too much of my encounter with Victoria. With every horrifying cry of pain, I felt the sting of the vampire's venom in my veins. Jake was obviously having the same preoccupying thoughts, judging by the tensing of his muscles each time Bella let out a blood-curdling howl. To distract ourselves, Jacob and I had dove in head-first to our roles as imprint and self-appointed godmother, and busied ourselves with taking care of little Renesmee.

It took us a while to figure out just what it was the little girl wanted to eat. At first, at Carlisle's request, we tried feeding her regular baby formula, which she drank. However, she didn't look very happy about it, and the only one who could make her drink the formula was her father. Eventually, I suggested we try feeding her what we'd fed Bella before Renesmee had been born.

Naturally, I had to once again act as guinea pig and try the blood-drinking for myself—I thought the first time around had been enough proof from them, but no…these scientific types are always so incredibly and unnecessarily thorough—but I didn't mind it hardly at all, now that Renesmee was a living, breathing being in my arms, and not just some little monster eating away at my friend.

Jake and I made an odd picture, the two werewolves sitting amicably on the couch, a tiny baby cradled in the crook of one arm, the other holding a bottle of O negative to the child's hungry and waiting mouth. There were times when I had to remind myself that Jacob and I weren't together anymore, that he could never feel about me the same way he had before Renesmee had come around. It hurt like hell, knowing that I'd been replaced the way I had, but what was I going to do about it? Cry? Renesmee was the baby, not me. I learned to live with the pain, simply because I knew it hurt Jacob too much for either of us to talk about it.

On the third day, Bella woke.

"She'll want to see Renesmee," I informed Edward with a smile when he told us the news. "Jake's feeding her right now, but I'm sure she won't mind an interruption. Right? Jake?" I called to my fellow werewolf from where he was feeding his imprint in the other room.

"Freya…I think we should let her hunt first," Jake insisted, cradling Renesmee in his arms as he came out to meet Edward and I. "Renesmee is half human, after all, and while you and I may think she's a little too sweet smelling for our taste—," Renesmee let out a giggle, and reached playfully for Jake's big hands, "—Bella might not thinks so. We want to make sure she can control herself before with take chances with letting her see Renesmee."

"Renesmee's her kid, Jacob," I reminded him incredulously. "She's not going to suck her baby girl's blood."

"You'd be surprised at how little control newborns can have," Edward sighed reluctantly. "Jacob's probably right. We should take it slow with Bella. We don't want to expose her to too much all at once. You and Freya stay in the house with Renesmee," Edward insisted.

"Yes, Sir," Jacob muttered.

Edward just rolled his eyes, and made his way upstairs to see Bella.

I turned back around to face Jacob and little Renesmee. As much ass I had resented her arrival when I first realized that it was the cause for Jacob's…change of heart, where I was concerned, I had grown to love this little mutant baby over the past few days. She was intelligent, and much more aware than I would have expected. She was growing at an unbelievable rate, as well, which had been worrying Carlisle for a while now.

I wasn't too worried, though. I was a bit of a mutant myself, after all. I shouldn't be able to sense the trustworthiness of a person, or turn invisible, yet I could; I'd turned out just fine after my run-in with Victoria. I was sure that Bella and Edward's kid would be smarter and stronger than any other toddler out there.

Her tiny hand reached for me, a smile spread across her lips, as if she knew what I was thinking. A part of me wondered if maybe she could; her father had that particular gift, after all. Jacob handed me the little baby girl, and she put her hand on my cheek.

Suddenly, I was seeing Bella's face. Her hair was damp, and she was even paler than usual. Her deep chocolate brown eyes stared lovingly down at me—Renesmee?—as she stroked my…her hair.

As quickly as the image had appeared, it vanished, replaced with an inquiring look from a different set of warm, brown eyes.

The little girl had begun to communicate this way the day she was born. I supposed it was her gift, like her father's mind reading and Alice's uncanny ability to know what was going on before it even happened.

"You'll see her soon, Nessie," I assured her, hugging the little girl close to me. "Nessie" was the nickname Jake had given her; apparently Renesmee was too much of a mouth full. "I promise." The little girl showed me another vision of her mother, along with a feeling of longing so fierce it nearly brought tears to my eyes. "I miss her too, honey."

Jake and I sat with Nessie for a couple of hours, taking turns rocking her back and forth, feeding her, consoling her when she cried for her mother. Then, at last, I smelled them coming.

"Stay here," Jake ordered. "I'll go first. We'll see if she can resist biting _me._"

After a while, I heard shouting outside. It seemed Bella was not taking Jake's challenge too well. I waited anxiously to see what would happen next—I didn't think Bella would try and hurt Jacob, but then again…she sure didn't sound to ecstatic.

"You _imprinted_ on my daughter?" I head her screech. There was a small commotion outside, and then the door flew open. Bella looked around the room, her bright red eyes dancing from one corner to another, until they rested on me. She headed straight toward me, her arms open to receive her little girl.

"She's been asking for you for days," I informed my friend as I handed over the child.

"Oh, baby," Bella cooed, hugging the child close. "I missed you too, Renesmee." The little girl put her palm to Bella's cheek, and I saw my friend's eyes go wide in awe. "How did she do that?" she asked when her eyes regained focus, looking to Edward for answers.

"It's her gift," he responded with an affectionate smile.

"She's so smart," Bella observed with a proud grin. "Just like her daddy." Edward wrapped his arm around Bella's shoulder, staring down at the little girl lovingly.

Watching the three of them…something in the pit of my stomach dropped about five miles. They were a family; they loved each other, and were happy to be together. They cared about one another.

I had had so many chances at having that. For a time, my mother, father, brother and I had been like that. We would go down to the beach on the weekends, and Mom and Dad would splash around with us in the waves. But then, Mom left. But then there had been Jacob. He and I…well, I thought we'd be a foolproof team, invincible, inseparable. But then came Renesmee. Now…I figured I was out of chances. I suddenly didn't feel like I belonged there, with that happy little family. I slipped outside, and sat down on the front porch with a sigh.

"You alright there, Clip?" Jake asked, coming to sit next to me.

"Does it ever bother you?" I wondered absently.

"Does what ever bother me?"

"How close we got," I answered, blushing a little once I realized I was actually talking out loud. "To having what they have."

"Clip…"

"I mean," I continued, my thoughts rushing around me. "We could have had that, Jake. You, me. We could have been a family, you know? If we weren't what we are…if we weren't wolves. I just know we would have been together for…for the rest of our lives."

"But Clip," Jake reminded me gently, "we are werewolves. And that…that changes things. That changes everything, actually," he chuckled, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. "It's like you said, the other day. You're going to find someone better for you than I am, Freya," he promised me. "I know you will."

I nodded, hoping and praying that this was actually true. I hated to think that I would end up bitter and alone, like Leah.

"Thanks, Jake," I smiled up at my best friend, hugging him tightly. "You really are my best friend. You know that, right?"

"Yeah," he grinned. "I know. Hey…I'm going to head back in. Are you coming?"

"Umm…you know what? I promised my dad I would come home once all this had blown over."

A hop, skip, and a wolf's stride later, I was standing in front of my house, my hand hovering over the doorbell. Did I dare? I knew Mom would still be there…but now that I thought about it, after seeing Bella's loving reunion with her daughter, I couldn't help but wonder if…well, maybe, if my mother could be as accepting of me as Bella had been of Renesmee. If Bella loved her daughter that much, even though she was a bit of a freak of nature…then maybe my mother could love me?

I rang the bell, and a minute later, my father had swung the door open and was enfolding me into his arms. "Freya, I've missed you so much! You know you don't have to ring the bell, honey. Marissa, Riff, Karson! Freya's home!" he bellowed throughout the house.

"Hey! Baby sis!" Riff exclaimed, coming down the stairs to greet me. I hugged him tightly. "I've missed you! How's your fatal disease treating you?"

I looked to my father curiously. Hadn't Sam told him what had happened? I'd figured that, once Renesmee was born and proved to be completely harmless, Sam would go ahead and release the information to the pack families.

"He's just joking, Freya," my father chuckled. "We know all about little Renesmee. How is she?"

"Oh, she's perfect," I gushed. My father led me into the kitchen as I talked, and began cooking dinner. When the family had sat down to eat, I was still talking about the events of the last couple days.

"What do you mean, Jacob broke up with you?" Riff demanded angrily. "I'll rip that boy's balls off with my bare hands," he growled.

"Tony!" my mother gasped.

"I meant brains," he corrected himself. "Sorry, Mom."

"He didn't break up with me," I clarified. "It…it was a mutual thing. We both decided it wasn't working out, on account of him imprinting on Bella's kid. Somehow that didn't seem like a very healthy relationship to me."

"Oh. Wow. Can you say awkward love triangle?"

"Tell me about it," I agreed with a sigh. "Anyway…while I was playing mama wolf with Rensmee, what was going on here? Anything exciting happen? Vampire attacks? Any new wolves pop up in the family?" I looked to my mother, my eyebrows raised. She gave me a reproachful look and dug her fork into the bowl of salad in front of her.

"Actually," my father began, a brilliant grin spread across his face. "Your mother and I have some big news for you and your brother."

"Oh, no," I groaned under my breath, dreading what words would come next. What was the big news? Were we moving to Florida? Selling Riff and me into white slavery? The huge smile on my mother's face only made my imagination spin off in crazier, totally illogical directions. My palms began to sweat in anticipation for this "good news" my parents had for my brother and me.

"We've actually known for a few days now, but we wanted to tell you both together. And since we're all here now…" my mother continued, her face glowing. By now, I really was about ready to pull my hair out and scream—that's how paranoid this suspense was making me. Finally, my mother went ahead and got on with the point.

"Kids, we're going to be adding one more member to the family."

"Are we getting a puppy?" I asked hopefully. Now that I thought about it, a puppy wouldn't be that bad. He and I would be the best of friends; actually, I wondered why we hadn't gotten a dog before. A dog would fit right in with a house full of werewolves.

"No…," my mother frowned, like there was something mentally wrong with me.

"Your mother's pregnant," my father interjected, his face absolutely blazing with happiness at the news. "Isn't that exciting?"

"Well…yeah," Riff decided after a moment's thought, a smile creeping up on him slowly. "Congratulations, Mom."

"Thank you, honey," my mother smiled. She turned to me expectantly, hopefully. "Well? Freya?"

"I…" I didn't know what to say. Every memory of my mother and I came rushing back all at once. Walking to the book store in Port Angeles, buying dresses, doing homework, going to the movies…the look of disgust when I'd first phased, the sound of her car pulling out of the driveway the night she left. I was bombarded with all the thought's I'd been repressing for so long. This news was just too much for me. It had finally happened; I'd reached maximum bullshit capacity. "I can't believe this," I growled, standing up from the table and storming out the back door.

Pretty soon, Mom had followed me. "Freya, please," she pleaded. "Please just be happy for me."

"No," I replied, shaking my head furiously. "I will not be happy for you. Why should I feel happy for you?" I spun around to face her, demanding an answer.

"Because you love me," she reminded me sternly. "I am your mother and you love me. Don't you?"

"Of course I love you," I sighed, exasperated. "Mom, you left me, not the other way around."

"I never wanted to hut you," she assured me.

"People seem to be saying that a lot lately, you know that? Sure, you didn't mean to. But you did. When I became what I am, I was terrified. I didn't know what was happening to me…everything was totally out of control. I needed you then more than ever, Mom, and you left. You left me, and it hurt like hell," I gasped, tears pricking the corners of my eyes.

"Oh, honey," she sighed. "I love you, so much. I just…I wasn't as strong as you are, or you father, or your brother. I couldn't…live the way you did. I'd gone through it with your father, worrying whether he would be coming back from his patrol every night. I couldn't go through that with both of you."

"I didn't want to live like that either," I assured her. "But I had to. Dad and Riff and I got through it together. You could have, too."

"I know that now," she sighed, running her hands through her hair. "Being back here, with you and your brother and father…I'm happier than I've been in years, Freya. My only sorrow…is seeing how much I've hurt you."

"I'm tough. I can take it," I replied callously.

"I'm sure you can," she smiled a gentle smile down at me, brushing a strand of hair away from my face. "But we both know that you shouldn't have to."

I shrugged, turning away from her, not sure I wanted this conversation to continue. But I guess my mother had another idea. "Freya…you will always be my little girl," she smiled. "I know you might not believe me right now, but I'm here for good. I'm never leaving you or your brother or father ever again. We are all going to be a family again."

"What happens if the baby turns out like me?" I demanded. "What will you do then?"

"I'm not going anywhere," she repeated, her voice sturdier, more sure of herself than before. "I'm never going to make that mistake again, Freya."

"Mom…" I looked her over, saw that determination in her eyes. How many times had I seen that exact same expression when I looked in the mirror? I sighed, and wrapped my arms around her neck. "I missed you so much, Mom."

"I missed you, too, baby," she replied, hugging me close to her. "I'm so, so sorry."

It was then that I finally felt myself let go of all the anger and resentment I felt toward this woman. It had taken me a while…but I thought that I'd finally forgiven her. We walked back into the house together, did the dishes in contented silence. When I announced that I was going to go ahead and hit the hay for the evening, she kissed me on the forehead and wished me sweet dreams.

Finally. I had my mother back.

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**Aww, well wasn't that a sweet ending? **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	13. Parties Aren't Supposed to be Fatal

**Disclaimer: Although it would be pretty flipping eptacular if it did, Twilight doesn't belong to me. It belongs to Stephanie Meyer:)**

**Oh my goodness! Two chapters in one day! This is madness- hopefully, it's enjoyable madness:) **

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**Chapter Thirteen**

**Freya**

The next day, I drove Riff's truck over to the Black place, where Billy was waiting for me. He let me in the house, and sat in the doorway of the room I'd been staying in for the past month or so and talked to me while I packed.

"How are you and Jacob doing?" Billy inquired mischievously. The old man loved to tease me to no end about his son; he nearly always got a reaction out of me. It was almost too easy, actually. While being with Jake had been the most natural thing in the world for me when we were together, talking with his father about our relationship was another matter entirely. Now that Jacob and I weren't together anymore, well…this sort of conversation with Billy had become about five times as awkward.

"Oh…we broke up," I replied. "Hasn't he been by here?" I found it hard to believe that Billy didn't know about Jake's imprinting. Had he been that wrapped up with Renesmee that he hadn't even gone home to see his father and tell him that he's found the love of his life? Probably, I decided. Jake tended to have trouble dedicating his time, focus, and energy on more than one aspect of his life at once. It was one of his fatal flaws; the inability to balance out his priorities.

"Really? I don't believe it. What happened?"

"Why don't you talk to Jake about it tonight?" I suggested, knowing that Jacob wouldn't want his father to find out about his imprinting from someone other than himself. Billy just shrugged, and continued to watch as I folded shirts and jeans up into my bag.

When I finally had all my things packed and ready to go, Billy was nice enough to help carry one of my bags for me out to the truck. He tossed it up and over the truck bed—with remarkable aim and strength from someone his age and in his condition—and grinned to himself as he heard the satisfying thud of his target being hit. Once all of my things were packed up and ready to go, Billy waved me on my way.

I was hanging up my clothes in my closet when I saw a shadow in the doorway. I turned my head, and saw Karson standing there, looking down at me.

"Hey, Karson!" I greeted him happily as I folded a pair of jeans.

"Freya," he nodded.

"What'cha been up to, big guy?" I inquired as I placed the jeans in the bottom of my closet. "Nothing shady, I hope."

"Heh, heh," he laughed, his massive shoulders shaking. "Nothing too shady. Just a little shady."

"Well…a little shadiness can be good at times," I mused. "You'd hate for life to get too boring, wouldn't you?"

"I suppose not," he chuckled. "I'm glad you see it that way, Freya. I actually think everyone should have a bit of shadiness in their life."

"Hey, Karson?" I called to him as he turned to walk away. He spun slowly back around to face me, and stared silently. I took this as my cue to continue. "How do you spell your name? I thought it was with a 'k', but I saw something in your handwriting in the kitchen with a 'c'…" I trailed off, feeling somewhat foolish as I rambled into the silence.

He thought for a moment, his face scrunched up in concentration as he apparently tried to remember just how to spell out his name. "I'm not sure," he shrugged. "I spell it both ways, I guess."

I couldn't quite tell if he was joking or not…but I chuckled halfway, just in case. He smiled at me, and then walked away. _Well, that was weird._ I watched him walk down the hallway and turn into the guest bedroom. I heard the door close, and then…nothing. I shrugged, and went back to unpacking.

An hour later, the front door opened and I heard my father call up the stairs. "Freya, honey! I'm home!"

I raced down the steps and hugged him tightly, grinning wildly. "Hi Daddy," I greeted him.

"Hi sweetheart," he replied with a laugh. "You get everything moved in okay?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "I didn't have that much stuff at Jake's place anyway. I was just unpacking when you got home, actually. How was work?"

He gave me a brief, boring explanation of his day, and I listened dutifully, nodding where I was supposed to and smiling when I wasn't quite sure what he was talking about. After about ten minutes of this, I claimed that I needed to get upstairs and finish unpacking my things.

The next week or so was completely uneventful. I went back to school, where the I was given piles and piles of make-up work I'd accumulated during Bella's pregnancy and transformation. That kept me pretty busy, but at least I actually got to come home and relax after school, since I was no longer in Sam's pack, and Jake hadn't established any patrols yet. Things were actually becoming sort of…well, normal. It was almost like I was a normal teenage kid.

On top of all this outrageous normalcy, I was actually beginning to start up a good relationship with my mom again. One day after school, I was working on my algebra two assignment and she sat down next to me at the table and helped me figure out what the hell I was supposed to be doing. Afterword, we got on the computer in my dad's office and searched the web for possible names for the baby.

"Riff got to help name you," my mother told me as we were looking. "So you get to help name your little brother or sister." Apparently it was a tradition of some sort in her family. Whatever the reason, I was appreciative of the bonding opportunity I got with my mother. I hadn't had something like that in years.

But, of course, something weird always has to happen to mess up my life. In this case, it was a vampire named Irina.

"Jake, what the hell is going on here?" I demanded as I entered the Cullen household one afternoon after school to find it in complete disarray. Bella was in a corner, clutching Renesmee tightly to her chest; Edward and Carlisle were talking quietly on the other side of the room. Emmett, Jasper, Alice, and Rosalie were nowhere to be found.

"It's Nessie," he explained, a worried look plastered to his face as he looked over at his imprint. "She's been seen, by a vampire from another coven." Jake explained the concept to me of Immortal Children. "Irina…mistook Renesmee for one of these Immortal Children. In vampire land, they're super illegal…and she's going to the Volturi."

"What?" I gasped. "Didn't anyone explain to her the truth?"

"That's just the thing. Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie, and Alice are out chasing her down right now…but she got quite a bit of a head's start. I don't know if they'll get to her in time."

"What happens if the Volturi thinks she's an Immortal Child?" I breathed, almost not even wanting to know.

"They'll come for her," Edward interrupted. "They'll decide whether it's true, and if they think it is, they'll execute her."

"Well, then we don't have anything to worry about? Right? Because Renesmee's not an Immortal Child."

"I'm afraid it won't work that way, Freya," Carlisle sighed, entering the conversation. "The Volturi have felt threatened by our coven for some time now. They fear that we may start an uprising, try to remove them from power. They'll take any opportunity they can to strike us down."

"Maybe…maybe Jasper and the others will catch Irina before she can turn you in," I said hopefully.

"I hope so, Clip," Jake sighed. "God, I hope so."

Two days passed without any hint that the Volturi might be coming. Thinking it might be safe, I called up my friend Johanna and confirmed that, yes, I would be coming to her party that Friday night. She assured me that it was going to be a blast, that she couldn't wait to see me there, and she just loved the top I wore to school that day. We hung up the phone, and that was that.

I arrived at the house ready for a small, intimate gathering of maybe six or seven people, but what I found was an all out-rager of a party, with music blaring and kids with plastic cups staggering up and down the yard. This kind of party didn't happen very often in La Push, and it was pretty impressive that someone had managed to pull it off—there were only so many teenagers around here, after all, and with the size of the reservation…it was difficult to keep something like this hushed up for long.

Not really feeling like heading back home to spend that Friday night with my parents—can you say lame?—I went ahead and walked up to the front porch. I wondered for a moment or two whether I should ring the doorbell or not…but then someone threw the door open and welcomed me.

"Hey, Freya!" Marnie Everdeen, the girl who'd answered the door exclaimed, grinning at me. "Nice to see you!"

"Thanks, same to you," I nodded politely, cringing a little at the smell of alcohol on her breath.

Finally, I found a group of people who didn't look totally and completely plastered. They were in the house's basement, playing a game of ping-pong. It was pretty intense, too—the ball was flying from one end of the table to another, and the spectators were shouting and cheering as the game progressed. When the winner had finally been declared, a new game begin.

Pretty soon, I was laughing and cheering along with the rest of the group. It was exciting, being with so many people who were also excited. Normally, big crowds of people made me nervous, but the thrill and adrenaline of the game was intoxicating, and before I knew it I was playing alongside one of the kids in my chemistry class. It took two or three consecutive wins on my part to be declared reigning champion.

After I had mastered the art of ping-pong, I continued to make my way through the house, mildly curious about the huge party I'd walked into. I'd never been to one before—I'd never been invited. But now that I was there, I wasn't sure I liked it. There were way too many drunks, too much openly making out on couches and in hot tubs out back.

_And too many vampires._

The thought entered my mind suddenly, and it took me a moment to comprehend it. But then I smelled it—the sickly-sweet aroma of vampire. It wasn't a Cullen either; I'd spent so much time around that particular coven recently that I could pick any one of them out in a heartbeat. No…this was something else. I moved toward the scent, hoping to find its source.

I was led out into back yard of the house, where a teenage boy was staggering toward the woods with a girl under each arm. He was talking in loud, slurred tones, and the girls were giggling maniacally and nearly tripping over their own feet. I crept up behind them, waiting for the vampire to make its move.

I waited behind a tree, in the shadows. The advantage of having being bitten by Victoria, besides all the cool little tricks I could do, was that I smelled like a vampire. That sickly sweet smell was all over me, covering up some of the wet-dog thing we wolves tended to have going on. I was a conglomeration of smells—vampires didn't necessarily know what to make of me on first sight.

"You know," the boy slurred, staring at one of the girls. "I've never met a chic as pretty as you are. You know that?"

The girl giggled shamelessly, dragging her fingertips up the boy's chest as the girl on his other side whispered in his ear. Disgusted by the display, I turned the other way so that I at least didn't have to watch. I was listening, though, intently. If I missed my moment to interfere, it could mean disaster for all four of us.

After a minute or two, I got my chance. The male in the middle staggered and fell, pulling the two girls on top of him. Kissing the neck of one, he opened his mouth up wide and prepared to take a bite. Unfortunately for him, he never even got a sip of the young girl's blood.

That's right—Freya Selene Lust saves the day. Go ahead and tell the sound guys to cue my theme song.

I stepped out into the moonlight, trying my hardest not to make my aggressive stance look too much like some sort of cliché superhero pose. My movement caught his eye, and I stared him down until he let go of the poor girl. He turned his head to side, cat-like, and watched me, waiting to see what I would do. Luckily, I didn't have to do anything, for suddenly, one of the girls made a horrible retching sound, spewing vomit all over the vampire's shirt. He cursed, shoving the girl away from him.

I raised my eyebrows at him, warning him. I didn't know if he knew exactly what I was, but he could tell there was something off about me. He couldn't tell how strong I was, how much I knew about him, or whether I had any friends around. If he mad a false assumption about any of these points, he would have been screwed. He felt threatened, which was the only reason he did what he did next.

"Get out of here!" he shouted at the two girls. "You disgusting pigs! Get the hell away from me!" The two girls gave each other pouting looks, then staggered back toward the house arm in arm, yelling to each other about how men were not to be trusted for anything.

"Well?" the vampire asked, lifting his puke-covered shirt up over his head to reveal a perfectly chiseled chest, paler than the moon and harder than diamonds. "You happy now?" As my eyes ran up and down his person, a part of me, the teenage-girl part, I was assuming, was thinking something along the lines of, _Oh, hell yes!_ But the cool, collected, werewolf part was pretty much just peeved with the guy for trying to show off.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded, taking a step toward him. "You must know who owns this turf?" It was common knowledge that the La Push wolves owned this land. It was pretty much suicide for a lone nomadic vampire to step foot on our land.

"I was just looking for a little midnight snack, darling," he defended himself with a debonair sort of smile. "Children are always the best," he continued. "There's something about them…they're just so incredibly…fresh," he grinned wickedly as he looked me up and down.

"You have no idea what you're dealing with," I warned him.

"Oh, I think I do," he laughed. "Look sweetheart, you're cute and all, but save the superhero act for the big boys, alright? Acting tough won't get you anywhere if you're nothing more than a big puppy dog." A cold shiver ran up my spine. How much did he know about me? I supposed it would be fairly easy to pick out I was a werewolf, especially after my comment early warning him to back off my land. But…how could he have known anything about my size, unless we'd met before. I was fairly certain we hadn't. He had the kind of calculating gaze that a girl can always remember.

"I could rip you to pieces, you know," I hissed, my discomfort beginning to piss me off. "Right here. It wouldn't be too difficult. I could just take an arm…a leg…and once you can't fight back, I'd rip the head right of your filthy neck." I took a step closer, our eyes locked as we stared each other down, waiting to see who would back down and back off. Neither of us did; pretty soon we were less than an inch apart.

"No need to get nasty," he chuckled as he crossed his arms. "I'm not here to start trouble."

Something about this didn't feel right. What kind of nomadic vampire showed up on Quileute land and picked his prey out of a wild party with hundreds of potential witnesses? It was unheard of. Something was off here. Something was way off. "Who are you?" I asked him with a frown as I looked him over.

Suddenly, I felt a distant numbness. My sense of smell was off, and my vision was beginning to get fuzzy. I could no longer feel my legs beneath me, and I collapsed to the ground. I saw the vampire's face leaning over me, and his face broke out into a sadistic smile. "The name's Alec."

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**Oh my goodness! This is why you never go out into the woods alone with strangers, mmkay? You might get kidnapped by the undead. **

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	14. Your Insanity Makes Me A Little Nauseas

**Disclaimer: As much as I wish it were, Twilight doesn't belong to me. My own characters, however, totally do. :)**

**Mmkay, so we left off with Alec totally kidnapping the crap out of Freya. This chapter will tell you why he bothered. Warning, it's a really, really crazy explanation. I've always seen Aro as just a little bit off his rocker, so if things sound a little insane, it's all good. It's supposed to be that way. Just go with the flow guys, and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!**

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**Chapter Fourteen**

**Freya**

_Oh shit._

I peeled my eyes open and took a quick look around. Now that I was awake, the memories of what had happened at the party were flooding back, and I seriously wanted to slap myself upside the face. How could I have been that stupid? I remembered how certain I'd been that I held all the cards, with my unnaturally sweet scent to cover up what I really was…and here, I was the one being played.

I was bound at the hands and feet by thick, itching ropes. This wouldn't have been that big of a deal by itself—my teeth were stronger than a normal human's; rope would be no issue to chew through—but someone must have been anticipating that, for I had also been gagged with some sort of cloth, my mouth taped shut around it. I had no idea where I was, or even why I was there. I wanted answers, but since I was alone at the moment (and I was; I would have heard if there were someone in the room with me), I figured it would be more productive for me to begin working on the first of my two major problems.

It was dark; my eyes weren't of much use, so I shut them, and focused on my other senses instead. I could smell mold and salt, and as I reached out my hands behind me I realized that the floor and walls of my little cell were both wooden. Wind was whistling beyond the wooden walls, and every time I made a move, there was the slightest of echoes.

I was by the sea, probably someplace up high, judging by the pitch of the wind. Assuming I was still in La Push and hadn't been dragged to the cliffs of Ireland, I reasoned that I was probably in some sort of log cabin or something built on the cliffs on the edge of the reservation where the pack liked to swim. If I could only get out of these bonds, I could make a break for it toward the cliffs and jump…

That was when the door slammed open.

The light that blazed through the open doorway was blinding. I squinted into it, looking up into the faces of my captors. There were two of them—Alec, the one who'd totally blindsided me like I was on Survivor or something. The other guy I didn't know. He was older…definitely a vampire, but so much older than any vampire I'd ever seen. I knew there was only one vampire this could be.

"Go ahead and take the tape off, Alec," Aro ordered. Alec did so, not taking any care not to hurt me. I spat the rag out in his face and smirked at his grimace. "Freya Selene Lust," Aro sighed, shaking his head. "We meet at last."

"What the hell do you want with me?" I demanded in a low growl.

"Why, my dear, that's just the thing I wanted to discuss with you!" he exclaimed, clapping his hands together excitedly. I glowered at him mistrustfully. Now that my vision had stopped swimming—whether this was a side affect of Alec's powers of numbing the senses or whether it was something totally different I couldn't be sure—I could clearly make out the dark grey light radiating from his person.

Somehow, my thoughts turned to Renesmee. The little girl who had the brightest light I'd encountered since I'd gotten this weird mutation of mine; a light so bright I sometimes had to squint when I was looking at her.

"Irina got to you," I guessed with a sigh. I'd known that the Cullen's hadn't quite been able to reach the snooping vampire soon enough, but I'd been sort of hoping that she would get eaten by a mountain lion, or maybe tripped and fallen down a really, really deep hole. Or died. But alas, she must have been alive and well enough to tattle on my newfound friends. If I ever got a hold of her, she sure as hell was going to regret ever messing with my family.

"Very good, Freya," Aro grinned, obviously pleased with my miraculous powers of observation.

"So. What are you going to do about it?" I asked. "I can't see you leaving a kind, good-hearted family who never harmed anyone alone for too long. That would be way too forgiving and warm-hearted of you."

"You sound pretty confident for someone who was up until recently bound and gagged in the corner," Alec commented dryly.

"You sound pretty confident for something with a nose the size of a small country. Is that why you keep sticking it up in the air like a prissy know-it-all?" I inquired. "So that you don't loose your balance and fall on that ugly-ass face of yours?" I finished with a growl.

"Now, now, children," Aro scolded. "Alec, the girl asked me a question. What am I going to do about it, you ask? Why, we're going to kill the child, of course! We must. Immortal Children are forbidden!"

"The girl," I began quickly, desperately, "she's not what you think she is. She's just a little girl. You can't just waltz in and…and kill her on a whim."

"Actually," Aro corrected me with an impatient clucking of his tongue. "I can, and I most certainly will."

"Then what do you need me for?" I spat, disgusted. "I won't give you the girl, Aro."

"Oh ho ho!" he laughed, his eyebrows shooting up toward his hair line. "You really do think we're here for the child, don't you? Ah…I forget how foolish the minds of the naïve can be. Freya, my dear, don't you know? We're here for you."

Shit. Why did everything have to revolve around me? Most teenage girls would have loved being in the center of attention all the time…but honestly, I just wanted to get myself off the radar for a while. I was beginning to feel like Harry Potter; everywhere I go, someone wanted to kill me. I didn't even get a magic wand to fend the haters off with.

"Me?" I asked, incredulous. "You came all the way over from Italy so that you could kidnap me? You know I could kick your sparkly ass if I got the chance?"

"Of course," he smiled. "I have the highest respect for your abilities, Freya. It is for that exact purpose that I brought Alec, not to mention the rest of my guard, along on this little venture."

Shit oh shit oh shit oh shit…it was becoming a mantra, a broken record in my head. I couldn't believe this was actually happening. They were kidnapping me, and they were using Renesmee as their excuse for invading Forks. I just flat out couldn't believe it. I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping this would all just go away. But it didn't help; I opened my eyes and saw Aro and Alec still looking down at me, rubbing my capture in my face.

"Of course, we have a much greater purpose for you than you could ever have imagined. In a way, you really should be honored, Freya. I have loyal friends and servants back in Volterra who would quite literally kill for an opportunity like this. Unfortunately, they aren't quite as qualified for the job as you."

"What…what job?" I asked, not even sure I wanted to know. If they thought I was going to be their werewolf muscle, they were certainly wrong. I voiced this opinion, and Aro and Alec just laughed.

"Oh, no, we've already got enough werewolf muscle," Aro chuckled.

"Whatever it is you want me for, just leave Renesmee out of it!" I shouted, struggling out of my bonds.

"I know what she is, you know," Aro stated calmly, picking at the dirt or blood or whatever else was under his nasty fingernails. "Yes…I've seen it before, children of vampire and human. It's really nothing all too special. Not compared to you, anyway. Werewolf, vampire, human…all rolled up into one fiery little package. Now, your children, I would pay to see."

Suddenly, I thought I realized where he was going with this. I couldn't believe it. He did he actually want me for…but no. That couldn't be it. That was impossible.

"My brothers and I have discussed this to no end, Freya, believe me," he snorted. "They are the most ridiculous when it comes to making a decision about anything. But eventually we decided…we could use a race of vampire, werewolf, and human in this world. We could bridge the gap between vampire and werewolf. We could unite the Supernatural races together in the strongest way! It would be a revolution, my dear. A revolution! Your children will be playing a pivotal part in creating history!"

Oh my God, this was disgusting. I actually thought I was going to be sick as he continued to talk. I mean…what the hell? Who kidnaps a girl, and then tells her, "Oh, yeah, we're gonna get you knocked up and use your mutant babies to help take over the world." Seriously? What kind of sick mind thought up this scheme? And who the hell thought it was even possible? What kind of idiot thought female werewolves were even _fertile?_

"I know what you're thinking," Aro nodded to himself. "Why don't I just grab a werewolf and bite him, right? Well…wrong. I've tried that already, and they've all ended up dead. So I did a little research. As it turns out, your family has a history of surviving vampire bites. Your father would be the perfect specimen—a pre-made hybrid! But, of course, vampire women can't have children. So he was out. I would just snatch up your brother and put a hole in his neck, but…well, obviously, he doesn't carry the gene. I could also wait a few years for your new little brother or sister to grow old enough for the gene to show…but I'm not quite that patient. Which leaves you."

I growled menacingly at him, my teeth bared a the mention of my family. Suddenly, I was shaking with such an intense rage that I just knew I was going to phase. _Maybe it's for the better,_ I thought absentmindedly as I felt myself change forms. _I might actually be able to break through the ropes._

It hurt like hell, snapping the bonds around my wrists and ankles free, but it worked. I stood before the vampires, looking for all the world like a golden retriever puppy gone wrong, growling up a storm.

I leapt over their heads, making a mad dash toward the cliffs.

"You'll be back, Freya!" Aro laughed. "I'll be visiting your dear little Renesmee in a week. Then you can make your choice. It's her or you, Freya! Think on that, my little werewolf!"

I could hear his laugher reverberating off the trees around me as I ran, headlong for the cliffs that I had come to see as my salvation. I wasn't sure quite what Aro meant, "It's her or you," but I didn't really have the time to figure that out at the moment. I was more focused on making sure my presence remained a mystery to any other wolves in the area, and making it toward the cliffs.

I was almost there. I didn't know whether Aro had someone following me or not—I doubted it, but just to be safe, I sprinted at full speed toward the edge of the cliff. When I'd reached my destination, I propelled myself forward with my paws, launching myself over the edge toward the dark water below.

**Owen**

Something was wrong.

I walked to the window and looked out, concentrating. What was this feeling? This…this knot in my abdomen, the sense that someone I cared about was suffering? I took a deep breath and closed my eyes against the blinding Alaskan whiteness outside. Focusing on that feeling, I reached out, not quite knowing what I was looking for.

Eventually, I found it.

When I entered Freya's mind, the first thing I noticed was the feeling of panic. It was spreading through her like wildfire Her thoughts were going about a million miles a minute, but they were fuzzy and unclear. She was unconscious—otherwise I wouldn't have been able to use my power (does that sound too cliché?).

I caught snippets, bits and pieces of information that were floating around in her thoughts. Something about the Volturi, and the Cullens. She'd been kidnapped, but she got away. She remembered falling off a cliff? No, not falling. She jumped. She'd hit the water hard, head first…she was asleep, floating in the water. She was going to drown!

"Freya!" I shouted. "Freya, wake up!"

"Owen?" her mind whispered. "What are you doing here?"

"Saving your life," I replied with a hiss. "Wake up, Frey. You're drowning."

"Oh."

And then she was gone.

I sank down into a nearby chair, massaging my temples. What kind of trouble was Freya getting herself into now? If the Volturi were involved, I knew there was going to be trouble sooner or later. They didn't like people who didn't cooperate—and cooperation wasn't one of Freya's strong suits.

"_Freya, I lo—," I began. I was finally ready to say what I'd been feeling for so long now, ready for her to know how much I cared for her. But I never got to finish. _

"_Owen, don't," she cut me off. "Just…don't. I can't bare to hear you say it…when I know that I can't say it back." _

The memory of that night, that last night I'd gone to see Freya before I'd left to stay with the Denali's, was haunting me, just like it had been haunting me for the past few months. I felt a rush of resentment toward her as I remembered how easily she'd shot me down, how she'd gotten me tangled up in the Victoria mess—my humanity was stolen from me, because of a stupid crush on a girl who was madly in love with someone else.

But no. It wasn't right for me to feel that way. I'd known how she felt about Jacob at the time; it hadn't been fair of me to put her in that situation in the first place. I'd really brought it upon myself, if I was going to be honest.

I knew she didn't feel the same way about me as I'd felt about her. But that didn't mean I wanted her dead. I knew I should do something. I knew that I couldn't let Freya do something stupid to get herself killed. I stood up and made my way toward the door. I wrote out a note for the others—they were out hunting at the present—and then I got in my car and started the long drive south.

**Freya**

My eyes flashed open.

I looked around me, remembering what had happened. I'd jumped…and hit the water just wrong. I'd passed out, and was drowning in the sea before Owen found me. Now that I was conscious, I began making long, strong strokes toward the shore. It was a fierce battle, between the waves and myself. It had begun to rain, naturally, so the water put up a tough fight, tossing me every which way until I almost forgot which direction was up.

Eventually, I fought my way toward the shore. I pulled myself up into the rocky beach, coughing and spluttering. I took a few deep breaths, my eyes squeezed shut. Once I thought I was ready to keep moving, I peeled my eyes back open against the sting of salt, and looked around. The beach was empty I was safe to phase.

I did so, and kept myself moving. I ran with long strides toward Emily's place, where I knew Sam and the others would be waiting for me, once they heard me coming. I hadn't set foot in the house since the pack had split, but I knew that we were going to need all the help we could get if the Volturi were really coming in just a week's time.

I arrived at the house, and stood on the front porch. I reached up with my nose and rang the bell, then sat on my hind haunches and waited patiently. At long last, Emily opened up the door and handed me a change of clothes. Once I was dressed, she admitted me into the house.

"Sam," I began. "I need you."

"Freya? What are you doing here?" Sam demanded in surprise.

"Yeah," Paul interjected. "I thought you were part of a coven now."

I glared at him, but then shook my head and turned back toward Sam. Obviously, any sense of bonding we'd shared after my fight with Victoria had been cancelled out the day I'd chosen Jake's side. If Paul was going to hate me, there wasn't anything I could do to change his mind. Instead, I focused on changing Sam's.

"Sam, I'm in trouble."

I told him everything. I told him how the Volturi had captured me, held me in the cabin on the cliff. I explained their excuse for coming to Forks.

"They want to kill the child," I whispered. "Renesmee. They think she's dangerous. But I swear to God, Sam, I've met her. I was there when she was born and I've sat down and watched her."

"Maybe the Volturi is doing right this time," Sam suggested gently. "We don't know what Renesmee will become in the future. What if she loses her sense of control? What will we do then?"

"Sam, you don't understand," I sighed. "We can't let her die."

"Why not?" Paul, still angry, demanded.

"Renesmee…she's Jake's imprint."

"Shit!" Paul exclaimed, kicking the coffee table. "Are you shitting me? After everything I did…after every single fricking thing I did to get you two together, he goes and he imprints? On the vampire's _daughter?"_

"That changes things," Sam admitted with a sigh, sitting down in his favorite chair. "Alright," he nodded. "Go on."

"Sam…they don't want her," I sighed, about ready to rip my hair out. "They want me. They want to start some sort of, freaky, vampire-werewolf-human hybrid race. They want to…to breed me," I shuddered.

"That's just nasty," Seth commented.

"But if I don't let them try…they're going to kill Renesmee," I sighed. "Sam, I don't know what to do. I…I gave up so much for her. I left the pack for her, and for Jake. I've already lost Jake. I can't loose her, too."

"What can we do?" Sam asked gently, resting his hand on my knee.

"I need someone on my side," I informed him. "The Volturi are going to come. Aro's bringing his entire guard with him. They're will be some sort of confrontation between the Cullen's and the Volturi. When that confrontation occurs, I'm going to need someone to support me when I trade myself over."

"We're not going to let you sacrifice yourself, Clip," Jared sighed, shaking his head. "What good will it do? They'll find out that you can't possibly do what they want you to, and they'll kill you. Then, they'll come back for the girl."

"And wipe out the entire Cullen coven in the process," Sam added.

"Do you really think I'm going to cooperate with Aro?" I laughed. "Have you forgotten who I am? No. I'll play it nice in the beginning. After that…well…I don't know what I'll do yet," I admitted sheepishly. "But I'll think of something. There's got to be a loophole here. There always is."

"We'll be working on it," Sam assured me. "Meanwhile…go ahead and tell Jake that he doesn't need to worry about us anymore. We're on the same side now."

"Thanks, Sam," I sighed, hugging him around the waist. "I've missed you all, so much."

"We've missed you, too, Clip," Seth grinned, attacking me with a tight hug. "We love you baby sis."

"I love you all too," I laughed, love for my family bubbling up in me, suffusing me until I thought I was going to explode with happiness. I felt like the Grinch; my heart had grown three sizes, standing amongst my brothers.

Okay, so I'd finally figured out what Aro had meant. Her or me. Renesmee's life would cost me my freedom. I'd be taken back to Volterra. I wasn't sure how they were going to go about creating this new hybrid breed of theirs, but I was sure it wasn't going to be pleasant. However…Renesmee was almost like a daughter to me—a niece, maybe—and I would die for her if I had to. I'd made a promise to Bella, that I would keep her daughter safe. I fully intended to keep that promise.

So, yeah. I was in trouble; more trouble than I'd been in since Victoria had labeled me as her main target. This time next week, I could be dead, or worse. But feeling the warmth of my brothers arms around me, feeling their love surround me…I knew that I could take on anything. I was whole, I was complete. So, bring it on, Volturi. Hit me with your very worst, most psychopathic and unethical scheme.

And I was ready.

* * *

**Weren't expecting THAT, now were we? That's okay. Neither was I. The entire time I was writing this, I was thinking to myself, "Holy cheesecake! Did this REALLY just happen?" But I guess that's part of the fun of writing:) You never know what's gonna happen. **

**Oh my goodness! Third chapter in a week? I think yes! Since I'm being so good about updating now, let's get that review number up so I know there are actually people still reading this. Your reviews really are my inspiration, guys. I don't know what I would do without all of you! Thanks for being so amazing!**

**Penny for your thoughts?;)**


	15. On My List of Priorities, Family's First

**Disclaimer: I didn't write Twilight:) Its characters, plot, and anything else you recognize isn't mine. Neither is Harry Potter- and there _is_ a brief Harry Potter reference in this chapter, because Harry Potter is pretty much amazing:) **

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**Chapter Fifteen**

**Alice's POV**

They were coming.

Not just one or two of them—the entire Volturi guard was going to be paying a visit to Forks, in just one week. I couldn't believe it. I knew an Immortal Child could prove an incredible threat to the vampire world, but that didn't mean Aro had to drag his entire guard halfway across the world to deal with it.

No…there had to be something else going on here. Some ulterior motive, something he's hiding from me. There was no way his whole guard was coming to judge our little Renesmee.

But what could it be? Who were they after? Could they possibly be after the entire Cullen family? We had grown rather large over the last few years, and Carlisle's influence had spread even further as his medical prestige in Forks grew. Perhaps we had stayed to long here, and the Volturi knew it. I couldn't bear to leave Forks behind…what with Bella's family and the wolves here. We'd all grown quite close…and it killed me to think of anyone hurting any of these people that I loved so much.

"Alice, what did you see?" Jasper murmured, rubbing my arms and sending waves of calm in my direction. I closed my eyes, taking deep breaths.

"The Volturi are coming," I replied, still watching the vision unfold before me. "One week. They're going to judge Renesmee. They haven't decided whether they're going to kill her yet, but somebody's trying to cover up why. Aro's got someone changing their mind, over and over again…" I squeezed my eyes shut against the head ache the succession of visions was giving me.

I kept watching. There were so many of them…so many bloodthirsty vampires with ruby red eyes watching, waiting to see if Renesmee would show herself. But she didn't. Instead, one tall, thin figure walked out into the middle of the clearing…

Then, suddenly, everything went blank.

"Is it Jake?" Edward asked. I couldn't tell if he was asking about the unidentifiable figure, or the werewolf who had undoubtedly managed to meddle its way into the situation. Edward knew, after all, what it meant when my eye into the future went blind.

"Nope. It's me," Freya announced, strolling into the room, as confident as usual. "I've just been stirring up trouble. Got any news?" she asked with a knowing sort of glint in her eye.

"What are you up to, Freya?" Edward asked in an irritated sort of sigh. She must have been hiding her thoughts pretty well if Edward couldn't hear what she was thinking.

"Oh, nothing," she shrugged feigning innocence. She fooled no one, and she knew it to. So, naturally, she went for the subject change. "How's Nessie?" Of course, she brings up the kid. The kid so many people had sacrificed so much for—the little baby girl who could melt a grown man's heart with little more than a smile.

"She's outside with Jake," Edward replied. "They're…hunting." He wore a mildly agitated expression, as if he couldn't believe his daughter was learning her hunting skills from a _wolf_ instead of from him.

I still wasn't sure why he hadn't just gone along with Jake and Nessie. It would have been a nice family outing, for sure. Jake was going to be a part of our family for a long time; as far as I could see, anyway. Edward needed to get used to the idea, before Nessie figured out that Jake and Edward didn't like each other all that well, and why. I could just picture the day she finds out about the past between Jake and Bella…

"_Why does Daddy hate you so much?_" she'd ask.

"_Well, Nessie,_" Jake would undoubtedly reply, _"I made out with your mom. Twice."_

Jake would do it, too, if Nessie asked. He wouldn't sugarcoat it for her, either; that wasn't really his style. He kind of just said what was on his mind, without sparing anyone's feelings too much. I had the feeling that not even Renesmee could change Jake's personality. He was himself, through and through.

One of the things Freya loved most about him, I believed.

"Jake could probably learn something from her, Edward," I laughed, loving the look on Edward's face as he absorbed my thoughts. I didn't have kids—I never would, either—so I felt no guilt at all in messing with the new father, talking about his little girl growing up.

"Probably," Freya agreed, smiling, her eyes sparkling with something strong and resolute that was difficult to identify for anyone who didn't know her very well.

I knew the look in her eye, though. That fiercely determined, just-try-to-stop-me expression…the one that almost always spelled trouble for the stubborn werewolf. She'd had the same look about her when she was arrived, alone, at our little Vampire Slaying lessons earlier that year, and again the last time I saw her before she took on Victoria. Freya was a schemer, for sure, with a mind strong enough to keep anyone from figuring out what she was scheming until it was too late to stop her.

The last time I'd seen her like this, she'd just about gotten herself killed. Freya was notorious for not doing whatever it was she was supposed to do in order to keep herself out of danger. I knew I would never be able to convince her to abandon her scheme…but I hoped that this time, she wouldn't get hurt.

I hated seeing my friends die.

Edward caught my gaze, a question in his eyes. I nodded. _Carlisle needs to know what I saw, _I told him, knowing that not only would he hear, but that he'd be listening for my response. He and I often had little secret conversations like this—it bothered the others considerably, but I never grew tired of it.

"Excuse me, Freya," he nodded to the wolf before us before making his way up the stairs to Carlisle's study.

Now that we were alone—or, as alone as we could be in a house full of supernatural creatures with superhuman hearing—I confronted her directly.

"I know you Frey," I sighed, shaking my head. "I know you're up to something."

She just shrugged, not admitting to anything, but not exactly denying, either.

"Look…I know that my family and I have caused you…problems," I smiled sheepishly. "I mean, with Nessie and Victoria…hell, if it weren't for us, you'd be a normal human girl."

"I was never meant to be a normal human girl, Alice," she laughed. "You know that better than anyone."

"You have always been special," I teased her. Then, I sobered up again, looking her directly in her gold-flecked eyes. "The Volturi are dangerous," I warned. "You might think you have the upper hand…but Aro, and the others…they're old, Frey—old, wise, and terribly powerful. If you do manage to trick them, and they figure it out…they won't be very forgiving. You don't want to mess with them, not if you intend to get away unscratched."

"I'm not going to lie to you, Alice," she sighed, shaking her head. "I'm not stupid. But…I want you to know that I know what I'm doing." She caught my gaze again, serious as I've ever seen her. "I have Sam and his half of the pack on our side. We may be able to avoid a fight, but a confrontation is inevitable. We're going to need everyone on our side we can get."

I nodded, closing my eyes and searching the future. "Carlisle will be calling in some old friends later today. Jasper and I will be leaving tomorrow, looking for someone like Nessie. I've heard of her kind before, a long time ago…and I think, between Jazz and I, we might be able to find him." I could see it all play before me, and I suddenly knew what I had to do.

"Be careful," she warned me, worry dancing in her eyes.

"I will be," I assured her with a smile. I folded her into my arms, hugging her gently. "I won't see you again until next week," I murmured. "So until then…good luck. Don't do anything too stupid."

"I'll try my best," she laughed. "And good luck to you, too." After that, she turned around and sped out the door toward home—not that I blamed her for being in such a hurry. With one week until our guests arrived, we all had an astonishing amount of work to do.

**Freya's POV**

Running through the forest outside the Cullen house, I began to plan. I knew what I was going to do once the Volturi arrived—I would go with them, of course, without any struggle. Of course, what I would do once I was in their grasp was an entirely different matter. However, I was willing to wait, and cross that bridge when I came to it. For now, I had to worry about what I would do up until the confrontation that was to occur in just one week.

I needed to make sure Sam and the pack members who had stayed with him were on my side. It just wouldn't do to have one of them blabbing to Jake or the Cullen's about what I intended to do. Renesmee's safety was a concern, as well. I knew the Volturi said they'd take me and leave her…but something about Aro's cold, blood-red eyes was absolutely untrustworthy. I wanted her as safe and protected as possible. If that meant keeping her away from the confrontation, so be it.

Yeah, I had a lot of work cut out for me…but my family comes first. It was the need to protect my family that propelled me away from Renesmee, away from Emily's house, and toward home.

I made the ten mile run from the Cullen's without hardly breaking a sweat—running had always been easy for me, especially since I'd been bitten by Victoria and taken on a few vampire traits—and unlocked the door in a hurry. I stepped into the living room, calling out to my family.

"Mom! Dad, Riff? Anybody home?"

"Freya, honey, what's wrong?" my mother asked with a concerned from as she made her way slowly down the stairs.

"Where's Dad?" I asked, running my hand through my hair, beginning to feel a little bit panicked. Like any wolf, I was extremely nervous at the prospect of vampires invading my territory. The image of Owen kept entering my mind…warm, soft, care-free, happy Owen, playing with his baby sister in the back yard, joking with his father as they washed a giant golden retriever in their tiny bathroom…all that had been taken away from him because of vampires. Hell, I might as well be honest here—because of me. I couldn't let that happen again, not to Riff, not to my mom, and especially not to my baby brother or sister.

"I'm here, sweetheart," he assured me, following my mom down the stairs.

"You guys need to get out of Washington," I ordered, my mind already flitting to places and people they could stay with.

"Freya, what's happened?" my father demanded, suddenly as anxious as I was.

"The Volturi," I breathed. "They're coming, in a week. They're bringing their whole guard—they mean business, Dad."

"Their entire guard?" Dad scoffed, disbelieving. "Why?"

"They want…Renesmee," I lied, hoping he didn't catch the hesitation in my voice. "They want to kill her. They think she's an Immortal Child, so they're coming to kill her."

"What's being done?" my father asked, sitting down on the couch. I followed, sitting next to him and closing my eyes, taking deep breaths. It wouldn't do to panic—we still had a week. One week to get everyone I cared about out of the state.

Once I was calmer, I replied. "Alice and Jasper are leaving tomorrow. I think she knows where to find someone who's like Renesmee. Vampire dad, human mom, you know? Carlisle's getting together a group of vampires…I think to be witnesses to whatever the Volturi might do."

Dad nodded. "That makes sense. They don't want a rebellion on their hands—if the Cullen's have enough of the other vampires on their side, it'll keep the Volturi in check."

"Exactly."

"What about Sam?" Dad inquired, leaning forward in what I thought was excitement. Judging by his participation in the battle with the newborns a few months ago, he enjoyed a good fight.

"Already talked to him," I confirmed. "I went over there earlier today and patched things over, after leaving his pack and everything. Things over there are still…a little tense, but I guess there's just something endearing about the runt of the litter," I sighed, shaking my head. "He's all for helping out the Cullen's."

"You're sure they won't make another swipe at Renesmee?" my father asked with a frown. He loved the other wolves as much as I did, but he knew what the pull of duty was like for us. Sometimes, a wolf's sense of duty could overshadow their sense of right and wrong.

"Not this time, Dad," I replied, shaking my head. "They would never kill of a wolf's imprint."

I saw him shudder. My mother wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her head on top of his. It was sweet—now that I'd forgiven my mother, I could appreciate how spectacular their relationship was. Seeing them, like this, so obviously in love…I felt a little knot in my stomach. Jealousy mixed with pain, I think it was.

There was a time not too long ago when Jake would hold me like that. Remembering Jake's arms around me hurt, like a knife in the gut. It was moments like this, I wished I were able to imprint.

"Dad…I need you to take Mom and Riff out of Forks," I insisted, getting back to my reason for coming. "They aren't safe here—nobody will be, once we have one hundred extra vampires walking around."

"I don't think you'll have to worry, honey," Dad soothed me. "The Volturi know better than to hunt on our land."

"Dad…please," I begged. "I don't want to have another Owen on my hands. If Aro or his guard got hold of Mom, or Riff…they don't deserve what happened to him." I bowed my head, remembering the boy Owen had been. I remembered the last time I saw him…when he asked me to run away with him. He'd seemed so much older then.

"That wasn't your fault, sweetheart," my mother comforted me, sitting on my left.

"If I'd stayed away from him, he would be human right now," I argued.

"I may be an old man, but I'm still part of the pack," my dad added. "I need to stay. If Sam's going to have us fighting vampires, I want to be there."

"Then let Riff take Mom," I begged. "You and I both know they aren't safe. How would you like a vampire getting near Mom, or the baby?"

Dad thought about it for a minute, and sighed. "She's right. It would be…prudent if you and Tony were as far from here as possible. If you won't do it for yourself…do it for the baby," my dad pleaded before she could argue.

"Fine," Mom nodded. "I've wanted to pay a visit to your Aunt Harriet for a while now. Riff and I can be with her in Florida in three days."

"Thank you," I breathed, hugging her tightly. "You have no idea…"

"I know, baby," she nodded, kissing my hair. "I'm scared, too. Just…be careful, alright? Both of you. I want this baby to grow up knowing its daddy and big sister."

"Don't worry about us," my dad chuckled. "We're tough." He wrapped his arm around my shoulder…and I could practically feel his pride for me rolling off of him. "It'll take more than some vampires to do us in."

I laughed lightly along with him, trying not to show my guilt. Mom would be so worried about me when she heard about the Volturi taking me away…Dad would be, too. But, I had to do it. If it had to be me or Renesmee…well, little Nessie was much more valuable than I was.

Not that I intended to die when they took me. No…I had the utmost confidence that things would turn out for the better, in the end. I would think of something, some way to get myself out of the inevitable situation I would find myself in this time next week. Then, I would come home and let myself be scolded by my overprotective, worrying parents. Everything was going to be fine.

Well, that's what I kept telling myself, anyway.

Still, I had a remarkable track record for coming out of sticky situations. Take Victoria, for example—she tried to kill me what? Two, three times? Yet here I was, actually stronger than I was when she and I first became acquainted. It was like…like Harry Potter. Voldemort's always after him…but Harry never actually dies. Yes, I was exactly like that. Except, you know, I don't have the cool magical powers like he does. Or the sweet lightning scar. Instead, I had the rough bite mark on my neck.

Things were going to be okay. I would be taken…but I would come back. I always came back. This wasn't going to be any different from any other time I crossed (metaphoric) blades with a vampires.

Right?

"Oh, honey, you don't need to worry about me and Riff. We're going to be fine," my mother crooned, stroking my hair gently. I blinked, surprised to find wet trails of tears running down my cheeks. I hadn't even realized I'd been crying—hell, I hadn't even realized there were people around.

"I know," I nodded, sitting up straight and wiping furiously at my eyes, embarrassed that my parents had to see me like that. "As long as you're away, you'll be safe. They aren't interested in you."

"No, they're not," she agreed, rubbing her stomach absentmindedly. "Now. Let's see if we can't finally pick a name that suits everyone."


End file.
